Do you have a heart for all people to be saved?
1 Jul 26
Today's devotional: taken from YouVersion, Devotions on F.I.R.E. Year One
Readings:
Job 21
Job 22
Acts 10:1-23
But God has shown me that I should not call any man common or unclean (Acts 10:28).
Do you have a heart for all people to be saved?
There is one race: biblically, the human race. Paul preaches, “And He has made from one blood every nation of men” in Acts 17:26. The human race derives from Adam. Furthermore, Paul writes, “For if by the one man’s offense death reigned through the one [Adam], much more those who receive abundance of grace and of the gift of righteousness will reign in life through the One, Jesus Christ” (Romans 5:17). Peter, the apostle to the Jews, receives a vision from God about killing and eating unclean animals (Acts 10:1-13). The object lesson conveys to Peter, “What God has cleansed you must not call common” (Acts 10:15). In essence, Jesus died for all people, and the message of the gospel is for them.
Employment Point: Proclaim the gospel to all people without partiality
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Reflections
We need to remember the gospel is not meant for just specific people or groups. It is meant for all! So that all will come to know Him!
““Listen carefully to my words; let this be the consolation you give me. Bear with me while I speak, and after I have spoken, mock on.”
Job 21:2-3 NIV
- Job rebukes Zophar in this chapter, talking about the things that were unseen, the wicked that did not receive judgement, etc. Job tells his friends the many things that happened of this world are not within human control. Yet the Lord is Sovereign and it is not up to us to say whether someone sinned or not. As there are plenty of wicked men who died a peaceful death, and none have seen God’s wrath on them. What are those then? Job is saying that the reverse is true as well.
“Is not your wickedness great? Are not your sins endless?”Job 22:5 NIV
- Eliphaz continues to rain accusations on Job despite all that he has said. He even used words in the bible to rebuke him, accusing him of not rendering aid to the weak though he was a powerful man. Not giving water to people in need or brush people aside.
- I wonder if Eliphaz truly seen him do it or are just saying base on groundless evidence.
- When we cannot understand why a situation happens, perhaps it is better for us to go to the Lord and talk to Him instead of accusing and condemning a human being. We are not God. Who are we to judge?
“Cornelius stared at him in fear. “What is it, Lord?” he asked. The angel answered, “Your prayers and gifts to the poor have come up as a memorial offering before God.”Acts 10:4 NIV
- Cornelius may be a gentile and I’m sure nobody else during his time may have experienced this but nothing will stop the Lord if He intends to bless. The Lord sees everything and knows everything and more importantly his heart is pure and good.
- Friends, let us all be encouraged and continue to do good for others, regardless of who they are. In the eyes of the Lord, there is only one race, which is the human race. Let us never discriminate anyone from our prayers and giving.
“Then a voice told him, “Get up, Peter. Kill and eat.” “Surely not, Lord!” Peter replied. “I have never eaten anything impure or unclean.” The voice spoke to him a second time, “Do not call anything impure that God has made clean.””
Acts 10:13-15 NIV
- truthfully who and what is truly clean unless they are washed by the blood of Christ?
“While Peter was still thinking about the vision, the Spirit said to him, “Simon, three men are looking for you. So get up and go downstairs. Do not hesitate to go with them, for I have sent them.” Peter went down and said to the men, “I’m the one you’re looking for. Why have you come?””
Acts 10:19-21 NIV
- looking at Peter, we realised what happened to him likely happened to us as well. The Spirit may have told us to go somewhere or do something but we may not have a complete picture. The main issue for us is to obey the commands and go as we are sent, trusting fully in the Lord on what He wants us to accomplish.
“The men replied, “We have come from Cornelius the centurion. He is a righteous and God-fearing man, who is respected by all the Jewish people. A holy angel told him to ask you to come to his house so that he could hear what you have to say.””Acts 10:22 NIV
- had Peter not had the vision for three times, and if not for the Spirit prompting, it is highly likely that Peter will not agree to go with them or even entertain them. But because of the vision and the Spirit’s prompting, Peter did something perhaps no Jew would have done and invited them into his house. He probably realised at this point that there is a reason why he heard what he heard and saw what he saw.
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The Inevitable Penalty
BY OSWALD CHAMBERS
July 01
Truly I tell you, you will not get out until you have paid the last penny. —Matthew 5:26
There is no heaven with a little of hell in it,” George MacDonald wrote. God is determined to make you pure and holy and right. Not for one second will he allow you to escape the scrutiny of the Holy Spirit.
Do you remember when the Holy Spirit convicted you? He urged you to come to judgment right away, but you didn’t listen, and the inevitable process began to unfold. Now you are in prison, and you won’t get out until you’ve paid the last penny (Matthew 5:25–26).
“Is this a God of mercy and love?” you ask. From God’s point of view, his actions are a glorious ministry of love. His goal is to make you pure and undefiled. But first, he wants you to recognize the disposition you’ve been showing. He wants you to see that you’ve been insisting on your right to yourself. The moment you agree to let God change your disposition, his re-creating forces will begin to work. Once you realize God’s purpose, which is to get you rightly related to him and then to your fellow human beings, he will tax the last limits of the universe to help you take the right road.
“You will not get out . . .” The warning Jesus issues here, in the Sermon on the Mount, points us toward the right road, calling to our conscience. Every moral call has a “should” behind it, an element that speaks to the will and the conscience, not to the intellect. If you dispute the Sermon on the Mount with your head, you will weaken its appeal to your heart.
If your relationship to God seems stuck, ask yourself, Have I done everything my conscience is telling me to do? Have I paid my debts from God’s standpoint? If not, say to the Lord, “I’ll write that apology tonight. I’ll reconcile with that person now.” Do now what you will have to do someday, and your relationship with God will be set right.
WISDOM FROM OSWALD
Beware of bartering the Word of God for a more suitable conception of your own.
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Reflections
Our relationship with the Lord can only be made right after a “heart transplant.” We need to be able to receive the new heart that the Lord has prepared for us and in order for us to do that, we need to get ready the body in order to receive it.
From a medical point of view, a heart transplant is considered something major. The planning involves contingency plans and ensuring all the necessary logistics, manpower and resources are available because it can proceed. It requires a lot of alignment in thoughts, plans and actions as well as outcomes. The whole team needs to be ready for this and failure is not acceptable in any case though there are always certain risks involved.
In our spiritual life, it is the same. We may want the new and transformed heart that is Christ-like but are we ready to embrace the new way of living?
When we ask the Spirit to search our hearts, He will point us to areas that require surrender so that change can happen. If we choose to stick to our old ways, nothing much can be done and more obviously, nothing will be changed. And if we cannot make it right with God, we will not be able to make it right with men. In this state if we force a heart transplant, it is quite likely that the body will reject the heart and cause even more problems.
A life of surrender to the Lord is important in order for us to grow. That would have to be part of our cost of following Christ.
Let’s pray:
Heavenly Father, we thank You for accepting us as children of God and be known as Yours. May You come and have Your way with us and help us to surrender our all into Your hands. Lead us and guide us and may we all like sheep, be able to discern our shepherd’s voice and bring about good changes in our life. Thank You Abba Father. In Jesus’s most precious and loving name I pray. Amen 🙏🏻
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Every year, the Church in Singapore unites for 40.Days of prayer, led by church, parachurch, missions and marketplace leaders, through video and written devotionals. Join us in prayer from July 1 to August 9!
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