faith – BibleJournal.net

Spiritual Formation

Today’s readings are Jeremiah 22-23,26, Psalm 77 and James 2. We will focus on James 2:14-26.

Most Christians agree the Bible is very clear that works do not get you into Heaven and only the grace of Jesus dying on the cross can (Romans 3:23, 6:23). When you first read James 2, it can be confusing by making it sound like faith alone does not get you into Heaven. So, do works actually get you into Heaven then?

Diving in deeper can help us get a better understanding what James is saying. Check out James 2:19 where James tells us believing Jesus was who He said He was is not enough. Why?

You believe that God is one; you do well. Even the demons believe – and shudder!

James 2:19

Knowing Jesus is the Son of God does not gain you eternal life in Heaven…even the demons know.

We are currently doing an all-church study which is based off the book, Practicing the Way by John Mark Comer. Jesus told us to go and make disciples (Matthew 28:19-20). The word disciple can be confusing because it’s not used much outside the church. John Mark tells us we can gain better perspective for its meaning by looking at the Hebrew word which is talmid, and it can be translated as a student of a teacher. John Mark contends a better word for us to translate talmid into is actually apprentice. As an apprentice, your job is to be with your teacher, become like your teacher, and do as your teacher does.

So, John Mark says Christians should have 3 goals as an apprentice of Jesus.

Be with Jesus.
Become like Jesus.
Do as Jesus did.

He argues spiritual formation is not an option. We are all following someone or something whether we realize it or not, and we are being spiritual formed by whoever or whatever we are following.

This gives us better context for James 2:14 which might initially have us raising our eyebrows when James says…

So also faith by itself, if it does not have works is dead.

James 2:14

To be saved by Jesus, you can’t just believe..the demons believed as James 2:19 says. If you are truly a follower and apprentice of Jesus spending time with Him..then you will become more like Jesus and do as he did. It is by works that your faith becomes active and fully complete. James speaks to this and gives the example of Abraham in James 2:22.

You see that faith was active along with his works, and faith was completed by his works.

James 2:22

He expands as we read on…

For as the body apart from the spirit is dead, so also faith apart from works is dead.

James 2:22

There you have it. You do not really have faith in Jesus if you are not completing works that demonstrate you are becoming more like Jesus and doing like He did.

Who or what are you following most closely that is shaping you?

Are you spending time with Jesus so that you are becoming more like Him and doing as He did?

Are you becoming an apprentice of Jesus?

I pray we will all reflect on these questions and let God speak into our hearts, telling us what He wants us to know.

More Jesus. More Faith.

Today’s readings are 2 Chronicles 24, 2 Kings 12, and Matthew 9. Our focus will be on Matthew 9.

What are you praying and asking God for right now? Do you believe it can happen? More importantly, you believe it will happen?

James 1:6-8 says…

⁶But let him ask in faith, with no doubting, for the one who doubts is like a wave of the sea that is driven and tossed by the wind. ⁷For that person must not suppose that he will receive anything from the Lord; ⁸he is a double-minded man, unstable in all his ways.

God instructs us here to ask in faith. So, what is faith?

Here is what Hebrews 11:1 says faith is..

¹To have faith is to be sure of the things we hope for, to be certain of the things we cannot see.

Are you sure of things you hope for and certain of things you can’t see? I wish as a Christ-follower I could consistently say yes.

In Matthew 9 we see 5 miracles Jesus performed with all 5 of them showing the person who the miracle was performed for or someone close to them showing faith.

Jesus Heals a Paralytic (Matthew 9:1-8) – A paralytic was brought to Jesus by his friends, and it specifically states Jesus healed him when he saw their faith in verse 2.
Jesus Heals a Ruler’s Daughter (Matthew 9:18-19, 23-26) – The ruler came to Jesus with his daughter dying and explicitly tells Jesus he knows she’ll live if Jesus lays hands on her in verse 18.
Jesus Heals a Woman with Blood Discharge (Matthew 9:20-22)- The woman had this problem for 12 years but states in verse 21 that if she just touches his cloak only..she believes she will be well.
Jesus Heals Two Blind Men (Matthew 9:27-30) – Jesus actually asks them if they believe he’s able help them see, and they say yes.
Jesus Heals a Man Unable to Speak (Matthew 9:32-34) – This one is a little more obscure but we see in verse 32 that the man was brought to Jesus. He wouldn’t have been brought to Jesus if someone didn’t believe Jesus could and would heal him.

There are 2 common denominators in these miracles. The first is Jesus. How many times do we pray for things but then not involve him and try to do it ourselves? The 2^nd common denominator is the faith that the miracle would be done. How many times do we pray for something without being sure God will do it?

What do our prayer requests need? More Jesus. More faith.

Where is Your “Prison?”

Today’s readings are 1 Samuel 23-24, 1 Chronicles 6, Psalm 54, and Acts 16.

Have you have had a dream or felt God lay it on your heart to do something specific and make a big change or take a big step in your life? Did you take that step only to find out things didn’t pan out like you expected? Maybe you moved to a new city to take a different job and then shortly thereafter you were laid off, or maybe you took the risk to start your own business…only to have the business not succeed. We may not have all had a dream or heard the audible voice of God tell us to do something but most of us have probably prayed about something or done something that just felt right only to have it not work out the way we thought it was intended. Here in Acts 16, we read about the same thing happening to the apostle Paul.

Paul had a dream telling him to go to Macedonia (Acts 16:6-10). His traveling there seemed to make sense at first as shortly after arriving in one of Macedonia’s leading cities, Philippi, we are told on possibly the first Sabbath there, he was preaching to many women and a woman named Lydia was baptized (Acts 16:11-15). Can we relate to this feeling of things falling into place quickly when we take a risk, and we grow confident that we were correct in our interpretation of God’s prompting and plan for us with this being affirmation? However, things changed quickly for Paul and his preaching friend Silas. A slave girl who had to gift of divination and fortune telling followed them everywhere and was yelling continuously in support of them to the point that it was possibly a hindrance and Paul being annoyed commanded it to come out of her (Acts 16:16-18). Now that her “gift” was gone, she was of no value financially to her owners and they were so upset that they had Paul and Silas beaten and thrown into prison (Acts 16:19-24).

At this point, what would you be thinking? For one, I would likely be scared. They were just beaten and wrongly imprisoned and Jesus who they preached about was just unfairly captured and beaten only to then suffer one of the cruelest deaths possibly dying on the cross. Would their outcome be the same? At a minimum, I would be questioning whether God was wrong, or I was wrong by coming to Philippi. You wanted me to preach the gospel God, but how can I be out preaching to people while I’m in these chains? We learn in Acts 16:25-34 what Paul and Silas actually did. They began to sing songs of praise to God…maybe similar to Psalm 54 from our reading today. Really? Praising God when I’m in prison?! Then, an earthquake came and their chains were broken and doors opened! Waking up and supposing everyone was gone, the jailer planned to kill himself before he was killed for not doing his job. But instead, Paul and Silas stayed there and shared to gospel with him and then traveled to his home with him to share it with his family leading them all to be baptized! Paul trusted in God and His purpose, regardless of his physical circumstance and environment, which led to others accepting Christ.

God’s plan for this journey didn’t stop there though. Not so ironically, I was supposed write this last week but our biblejournal.net was down. This Sunday on 5/5/24 at Eastview Christian Church, Pastor Steve Carter spoke about Acts 16 in his sermon (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_1TFw-uEjwU). He shared this happened around 47-50 AD and then somewhere around 60-63 AD while Paul was imprisoned again in Rome, he wrote a letter to the people in Philippi which we now know as the book of Philippians in the Bible. This letter which may not have been written if Paul had not gone to Philippi and been imprisoned there has impacted millions, if not billions, over the last 2000 years. God cares so much of each one of us and our eternal souls that Lydia’s conversion to following Jesus alone would have been worth Paul’s travels to Macedonia, but because Paul remained faithful, that was just the start. We can see Paul’s trust in God’s plan and his past experience in Philippi echoing in his letter to them years later as we read it. In fact, check out Philippians 1:6, “being confident of this, that he who began a good work in you will carry it on to completion until the day of Christ Jesus.” It is mind blowing the impact Paul has now had two separate times while in prison. What is your “prison” now or in the future where you can still make an impact on others and God can do a great work in and through you when you stay faithful to Him and His purpose?

Consider taking some time today to reflect on this, and also take a listen to this song called Holy Ground by Passion featuring Melodie Malone.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xU771D5AYWE

Freshness

Today’s readings are Genesis 47-48, Psalm 25, and Galatians 3.

While the new year starting can sometimes bring anxiety about what the coming year may hold, most of us get excited about the calendar turning over and the opportunity to hit the reset button on some things in our life. This year will be better we believe…better discipline on our workouts and diet, sticking to our budget, new business goals we plan to accomplish, being in the Word more, and an increased focus on our blessings and living with gratitude to name a few. So now that we are just over 3 weeks in…how are you doing?

Personally, I would say there has been some good and some bad for me, but in transparency I’ve failed in my patience, and I’ve been a little short tempered at times with those I love the most. I feel terrible about it. While many may say my actions have been very minor and just a quick overreaction, it makes my heart ache that I have caused hurt in any way…even if for just a moment…to those I love the most. I’ve asked for forgiveness similar to what we read in Psalm 25 in prayer and have apologized to Shannon and promised to do better. Why I have been this way? I don’t know..I wish I could say. I have so much to be grateful and happy for.

Reading Galatians 3 today makes thankful and is a good reminder that we are justified and saved by our faith, not the Law or our works. I want to do better, and I must do better..but I’m not perfect and am destined to fail again…if not in this way…then in another way.

For all who rely on works of the law are under a curse; for it is written, “Cursed be everyone who does not abide by all things written in the Book of the Law and do them.”

Galatians 3:10

No one is capable of doing “all things” of the Law and not making a mistake as we are also told in Romans 3:23. But we can be grateful for more clarity on how we justified in the following verses in Galatians 3.

Now it is evident that no one is justified before God by the law, for “The righteous shall live by faith.”

Galatians 3:11

And then a few verses later..

Christ redeemed us from the curse of the law by becoming a curse for us- for it is written, “Cursed is everyone who is hanged on a tree-“

Galatians 3:13

We are fully redeemed and can be with God when our life here on Earth ends because of what Jesus did for you and for me. He took on the curse of death that should have been mine and yours.

Does this give us an excuse to sin and do what we want? No..absolutely not. We are told in Romans 8:9 and 1 Corinthians 6:19 that the Holy Spirit is in us when we believe.

This year I’m reading through the devotional My Utmost for His Highest by Oswald Chambers. On January 20^th it reads the following, “Freshness is not the result of obedience; it comes from the Holy Spirit. Obedience keeps us ‘in the light as He is in the light’ (1 John 1:7).” A little bit later it also reads, “Being born of the Spirit means much more than we usually think. It gives us new vision and keeps us absolutely fresh for everything through the never-ending supply of the life of God.”

This serves as a reminder for me, and I hope for some reading this, to stay close to Him so that we can find forgiveness, peace, joy, life, and “freshness” from the Holy Spirit who lives in us to start over today and everyday…regardless of what we’ve done or what day it is on the calendar.

Thy Will Be Done

Today’s reading is Job 4-7, Psalm 99, and Revelation 11.

I am someone who writes in my Bible. There are many times I’m thankful I do because it allows me to be reminded of a takeaway I had in the past or something a pastor said which impactful related to verses or a chapter. When reading Revelation 11, I had underlined in the past the last part of Revelation 11:15 and written down next to it, “Matthew 6:10.”

¹⁵Then the seventh angel blew his trumpet, and there were loud voices in heaven, saying, “The kingdom of the world has become the kingdom of our Lord and of his Christ, and he shall reign forever and ever.”

Revelation 11:15

When I flipped back in my Bible to Matthew 6..I found Matthew 6:10 is part of the Lord’s Prayer and reads….

¹⁰Your kingdom come,
your will be done,^[a]
on earth as it is in heaven.

Matthew 6:10

When I say the Lord’s Prayer, I think of this part in the context of that I’m wanting and asking Him for His will to be done. However, when I read Revelation 11:15 and I say the Lord’s Prayer with it in mind…I’m reminded this part could really be said in the context of a statement. It is not necessarily asking, but a reminder that is what actually will happen. He’s in control. “His will” in fact will happen. And He will in fact make Earth as it is in Heaven. As I say the Lord Prayer the next time, it can remind me to go forth with my day in confidence and faith. I don’t have to be nervous or wonder about the future at all. He wins. It’s for certain. This can give us a peace that passes human understanding to live life differently.

Faith in Action

Today’s readings are Ezekiel 25-27, Psalm 82, and John 9.

The story is told of a man who was watching the news and heard a flood was coming from an approaching storm, and he needed to evacuate his home. However, he thought to himself that he didn’t need to because God would save him. Shortly thereafter the flood waters approached his house and a neighbor knocked on his door telling him he needed to leave, but he told the neighbor he didn’t need to and he’d be fine because God would save him. As the flood waters overtook his house and he fled to the roof, a rescue crew came by boat and asked him to get onboard. He declined again saying God would save him, and he didn’t need their help. Finally, he climbed up on his antenna on his house as the waters now covered the roof. A helicopter flew up and dropped a rescue ladder, but his answer was the same in that he didn’t need the help because God would save him. This ultimately led to his demise.

We read in John 9 today where Jesus spit on the ground creating mud, rubbed it on a blind man’s eyes, and told him in John 9:7 to “Go, wash in the pool of Siloam.” The man followed Jesus’ prompting and was able to see after doing so. Let’s unpack the craziness of this a little more for a second. John 9:1 tells us this man had been blind from birth so him believing anything could help him see is far-fetched to say the least. We don’t know if he had ever even heard of Jesus prior and in any event, he might find it a little weird when a guy hawks up a loogey and rubs mud from it all over his eyes. Jesus then doesn’t just tell the man to open his eyes. The man must walk to the pool of Siloam. We aren’t told how far it is away, but it doesn’t seem like it’s right there by him and remember the man is blind. So that means it’s going to take quite a bit of work for him to get there. He’s going to have to get a friend (if he has any) to take him there or ask quite a few people for directions along the way. This man has plenty of opportunities for excuses to not only think this wouldn’t lead him to see because he was blind for his entire life, but also now he must go through some extra steps and challenges to make it happen. However, he follows Jesus’ steps, and we all know the miracle is complete and he’s able to see.

Well known pastor Mark Batterson says there is a human element to most all the miracles Jesus performed. Each person had to take a step in faith for God to perform a work in or on them and for them to see the completion of it. You can’t get the job or change careers like you’ve been praying for if you don’t send out your resume or apply to college to get your degree in the field you want to go into. You can’t save your marriage if you don’t work on it and take actions to heal it through conversations, counseling, and putting God first through going to church and studying His Word and praying together. You can’t fix financial challenges of overspending without creating a budget and sticking to it. You can’t fix your addiction problem if you don’t admit you have a a problem and get some help from others. He wants to see that you will take a step with faith in Him to help you complete the rest.

My question today for all of us is…what miracle are you asking God for? And from there…what is He laying on your heart for you to do first in faith trusting Him so that He will then complete His work in you?

Chicken or the Egg?

Today’s readings are Jeremiah 22,23, and 26, Psalm 77, and James 2.

What comes first..the chicken or the egg? Most of us have probably heard this saying implying that you can’t have a chicken without an egg, but you can’t have an egg without the chicken. So, which comes first? James 2 digs into a similar question but with the topic of faith and works.

Christians believe that you go to Heaven by believing, or having faith, that Jesus died on the cross for the forgiveness of your confessed sins and rose again on Easter (Romans 10:9-11). “Good deeds” don’t get you into Heaven and “good people” don’t go to Heaven if they don’t believe in Jesus. So, some can struggle with James 2:24 which says, “You see that a person is justified by works and not by faith alone.” James 2:17 also says similar, “So also faith by itself, if it does not have works, is dead.” Are these verses saying just faith in Jesus doesn’t get you to Heaven? Is this saying works get you into Heaven?

I believe Scripture can often best be interpreted by cross referencing other Scripture, and I don’t believe it’s a coincidence that our all-church study verses last week came from 1 John 4 which can provide some more context when paired with James 2.

What compels us to do good works? Put simply…love. 1 John 4:16 says, “God is love.” Reading on in 1 John 4, we see verse 20 states..

If anyone says, “I love God,” and hates his brother, he is a liar; for he who does not love his brother, whom he has seen cannot love God whom he has not seen.”

1 John 4:21 follows up verse 20 also stating…

And this commandment we have from him: whoever loves God must also love his brother.

If you truly have faith and love God, then it will show up in your actions. If you say you have faith and love God, but your works don’t show it…then do you really have faith and love God? James is telling us you can’t have one without the other..chicken or egg concept. Your faith in God is made complete by your actions just as in Abraham and Rahab who James references in James 2:23 and James 2:25.

Jesus gives us a great example of this when in John 13 He washed his disciples’ feet which was thought to be such a lowly task that Jews wouldn’t even let their Jewish servants do this for them, only Gentile servants. And of course, Jesus showed us the ultimate act of service when the next day He, the God of the universe in the flesh, gave himself up suffering one of the most gruesome and painful deaths possible through his scourging and Crucifixion on the cross, all so we could be forgiven and live with Him in Heaven.

We love because He first loved us.

1 John 4:19

Let us reflect personally.

How am I serving my family?
How am I serving my church?
How am I serving my neighbors or community?
How am I serving my friends?
How am I serving those who can do nothing for me in return?

Pick one you can improve on and let us complete our faith in action.

Aligning Actions with Values

Today’s readings are 2 Kings 22-23, Psalm 73, and 2 Corinthians 5.

The local financial planning firm I represent used to have part of our mission statement which said, “aligning actions with values.” We all have certain values, whether they be in our mind or we’ve written them out. As Christ followers, I would assume and hope some, if not all, of those values line up with our Christian faith. The questions for us today is, are we actually living those out? Would others who you know well or others who meet you for the first time know you are a Christ follower? 2 Corinthians 5 discusses how we should live life differently as a follower of Jesus. It challenged me to ask myself, am I?

2 Corinthians 5 talks about how our body is a tent, a temporary dwelling for our eternal soul. As result of knowing our citizenship is really in Heaven, there are some things we should be doing to live life differently which others would recognize and possibly cause them to turn to Christ as well.

Live by faith, not by sight (2 Corinthians 5:7)
Allow the love of Christ to control us (2 Corinthians 5:14)
Live for Him and not for ourselves (2 Corinthians 5:15)
Do not regard others by their flesh which is weak (2 Corinthians 5:16)
Be an ambassador for Christ (2 Corinthians 5:20)

Jesus’ last words, which must be important since they were his last, in Matthew 28:18-21 instructed us to go and make disciples of others. This sounds a lot like 2 Corinthians 5:20 which tells us to be ambassadors for Christ.

This again challenges me to ask myself if I’m being an ambassador for Christ based on my actions through living by faith, showing Christ’s love in my actions, living for Him and not myself, and regarding others by their soul and not their outward physical appearance and actions (seeing them how God sees them).

The great news is that although I’m sinful and have a lot of work to do in these areas, God tells us in 2 Corinthians 5:21…

“For our sake He made him to be sin who knew no sin, so that in Him we might become the righteousness of God.”

For more reflection on these areas, check out 2 Kings 22-23 where we see King Josiah of Judah aligning his actions with his values and leading his people to follow God, as well as Psalm 73.

My flesh and my heart may fail,

but God is the strength of

my heart and my portion

forever.

Psalm 73:26

It’s Not How You Start..It’s How You Finish!

Today’s reading is 2 Chronicles 15 and 16, 1 Kings 16, and Philemon.

In 2 Chronicles 15 and 16, we learn about the life of King Asa of Judah.

King Asa turned to the Lord after Azariah, the son of Obed, spoke truth to Asa saying in 2 Chronicles 15:2.

²and he went out to meet Asa and said to him, “Hear me, Asa, and all Judah and Benjamin: The Lord is with you while you are with him. If you seek him, he will be found by you, but if you forsake him, he will forsake you.

Azarariah went on in 2 Chronicles 15:4 to describe how Israel was without God but when they turned to Him, He found them. King Asa responded with courage by turning to God putting away all the detestable idols (2 Chronicles 15:8). He was on fire for the Lord following God for many years.

However, in his last years, something changed. He turned away from God for an unknow reason in his 36th year of his reign. He took the treasures from the house of the Lord and gave them to the king of Syria as a covenant to get them to break their covenant with Baasha who was the king of Israel and it backfired. Syria did not support them.

Then, Hanani, the seer, delivered the famous verse in 2 Chronicles 15:9…

⁹For the eyes of the Lord run to and fro throughout the whole earth, to give strong support to those whose heart is blameless towards him. You have done foolishly in this, for from now on you will have wars.”

I wish the story of Asa had a happy ending, but it doesn’t. In the 39^th year of his reign, he got a disease in his feet and even then did not turn to the Lord. In the 41^st year of his reign, he died without turning to God.

Unfortunately, Asa did not finish well. As with most things in this life on Earth, it’s not how you start but how you finish.

The criminal on the cross next to Jesus in Luke 23:49-43 may not have started well, but he gave his life to Jesus and Jesus said they would be together in Heaven. He finished well!

Have you not started well with this life on Earth? That’s ok…we can learn from the man on the cross next to Jesus…it’s how you finish that matters!

Have you started this life pretty well following Jesus? Let’s learn from Asa and continue to stay close to Jesus throughout all of our lives and finish well!

The Story

Today’s reading is Joshua 5-8, Psalm 14, and Luke 15.

Despite the fact that I like to think that I’m a “good person” (and I have to believe most are like me and think they are), I know I sin if not through actions or word, through thought, probably ever hour of every day. Sin is not in God’s nature whatsoever. It is exactly the opposite of His being and who He is. Today’s readings are a humbling reminder of what God thinks about sin, and yet also a reminder of his grace and love. It is also a reminder of how pleasing it is to Him when we show faith and trust in Him and turn back to Him after we fall away. Obeying Him does not mean immediate gratification like a dog shaking and getting a treat, but a continued path living a life of filled with intentional sin and disobeying Him will surely lead to destruction. And turning back to Him will lead to grace, forgiveness, and ultimate victory through eternal life no matter how far we have fallen away.

Early on in today’s readings we are reminded that God freed the Israelites from slavery and kept His word to lead them to the Promised Land. But, we also learn in Joshua 5:6 He let them wander in the desert for 40 years and did not let the generation He freed go into the Promised Land (including Moses who God thought highly enough to have attend Jesus’ transfiguration in Matthew 17) because “they did not obey the voice of the Lord.” Yet, we see it is pleasing to the Lord and He “rolled away the reproach of Egypt” when the next generation obeys His instructions to Joshua that all the men be circumcised (Joshua 5:9). They keep the Passover, God sends a commander of His army to speak to Joshua (Joshua 5:14), and God instructs Joshua in Joshua 6 how he and his army are to march around Jericho for 6 days quietly and on the 7th day they are to march around the city 7 times. On the 7^th time of the 7^th day, they are to blow the horns and shout and the walls of Jericho would fall down before God would give them victory in battle. The Israelites could have said to Joshua, “yeah right…these walls are just going to fall when we blow our horn and yell…give me a break?!” However, this time they obeyed, and God gave them victory. What great faith and belief they showed! As promised in Joshua 6, the only family God protects in Jericho is Rahab’s because she helped the Israelite spies in Joshua 2.

As we read on in Joshua 7, we see going against God’s word leads to a path of destruction. God gave specific instructions in the conquering of Jericho that the gold and devoted things be given to the Lord (Joshua 6:18-19). But Achan took some for himself and hid it which was displeasing to God resulting in him being stoned and thus the Lord let Israel first be defeated at Ai before later giving them victory (Joshua 8). We read later in Joshua 8 where Israel turns back to God by building an altar to Him on Mount Ebal just as Moses commanded be done. Joshua honored God by also writing the law of Moses on the stones (Joshua 8:32) and by reading all the words of the law, every single one, to all the people of Israel (Joshua 8:35) which was no doubt pleasing to God.

I love the parallels of our verses each day from the Old Testament, including the Psalms, and the New Testament. Psalm 14 speaks of the corruption of man God sees as He looks down and sin which displeases Him (Psalm 14:2-3), yet promises Jesus’ coming to give salvation in Psalm 14:7. Then, we read in Luke 15 where Jesus tells how God seeks out sinners to give them a chance to repent and turn to Him through the parables of the lost sheep, the lost coin, and of course the amazing story of grace in the story of the prodigal son.

Think of some of your favorite movies and books. What is a common theme in most all of them, especially the ones that really tug on your heart strings? Most all have a story of redemption from someone who has either done wrong in the past or just didn’t have things go their way for a while. Why do you think those stories get to us, and why do we love them so much? Maybe that’s because it’s our story. It’s the story God has laid on all of our hearts because we are all part of God’s story and plan to save us from our sin (Romans 5:8) when we turn to Him. And while we read today how much God hates sin, we see in Luke 15 how much more joy He has when a sinner turns to Him for grace and forgiveness. Do you remember Rahab, the prostitute we mentioned earlier who decided to turn from her sinful ways and help the Israelites? She was not only spared in the destruction of Jericho, but ultimately became part of the bloodline of Jesus (Matthew 1:5)!

Please watch this short video from Spread Truth and pray for God to lay on your heart someone who needs to hear it and know God’s love and that they are part of His greater Story.

https://youtu.be/f0gfIvN9zv4

Here is the children’s version as well.

https://youtu.be/XbrsAF2_BOk