Devote yourself to God’s Word

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And they devoted themselves to the apostles' teaching and the fellowship, to the breaking of bread and the prayers. --Acts 2:42 Imagine what it might have been like to be a part of that first church that was born on the Day of Pentecost! That original church was an extraordinary body of Christ-followers unlike anything the world had ever seen. These people changed their world! And guess what? As the church today, we should be just like that original empowered church! It’s true. God has given to us everything he gave those first followers. And everything that first church did, we should be doing today. Today’s verse says the early church “devoted themselves to the apostle’s teaching… to fellowship… and to prayer.” After the church was born, the believers immediately began growing in their knowledge of Christ and following Jesus’ commandment to love one another. Does this describe your faith walk? If not, you are missing out on the experience that God intended you to have. Don’t settle for less than being part of the empowered church today! Hold nothing back from Jesus. Devote yourself to God’s Word, to loving others, and to prayer. Do these things and like that first church, you will change your world, too! DON’T SETTLE FOR LESS THAN BEING PART OF THE EMPOWERED CHURCH TODAY!

Tuesday, December 11, 2018

“What Child Is This?”

by Dr. Paul Chappell

“And the angel said unto her, Fear not, Mary: for thou hast found favour with God. And, behold, thou shalt conceive in thy womb, and bring forth a son, and shalt call his name JESUS. He shall be great, and shall be called the Son of the Highest: and the Lord God shall give unto him the throne of his father David: And he shall reign over the house of Jacob for ever; and of his kingdom there shall be no end.”

Luke 1:30–33

In 1865 a young manager at a maritime insurance company in Glasgow, Scotland, named William Chatterton Dix. was diagnosed with a serious illness. The doctors thought he was likely to die, and Dix fell into a serious depression. During that time while he was confined to his bed, he began reading the Bible and, as a result, turned back to God. When he recovered, Dix began writing hymns of praise to God, and one of the first was the Christmas carol, “What Child Is This?”

What Child is this
Who laid to rest
On Mary’s lap is sleeping?
Whom Angels greet with anthems sweet,
While shepherds watch are keeping?
This, this is Christ the King,
Whom shepherds guard and Angels sing
Haste, haste, to bring Him laud,
The Babe, the Son of Mary.

The baby born in Bethlehem was not an ordinary baby. Although Jesus was fully human, He was also still completely God, and He came to be our Saviour. The angel Gabriel told Mary who Jesus was and what He would do before His birth. And in His life Jesus perfectly fulfilled the will of His Father in Heaven. Like the wise men, we must acknowledge who Jesus really is and worship Him. “And when they were come into the house, they saw the young child with Mary his mother, and fell down, and worshipped him: and when they had opened their treasures, they presented unto him gifts; gold, and frankincense, and myrrh” (Matthew 2:11).

Today’s Growth Principle: 

Christmas is a wonderful time to renew our worship of Jesus, our Saviour.