abideinchrist – herbcotton.org

Are You A Member of the Family of God?

Text:

Mark 3:31-35 (ESV)

31 And his mother and his brothers came, and standing outside they sent to him and called him.

32 And a crowd was sitting around him, and they said to him, “Your mother and your brothers are outside, seeking you.”

33 And he answered them, “Who are my mother and my brothers?”

34 And looking about at those who sat around him, he said, “Here are my mother and my brothers!

35 For whoever does the will of God, he is my brother and sister and mother.”

Observation:

Mary, the mother of Jesus, had other children after the birth of Jesus. However, they did not all believe in Jesus.

John 7:1-5 (ESV)

1 After this Jesus went about in Galilee. He would not go about in Judea, because the Jews were seeking to kill him.

2 Now the Jews’ Feast of Booths was at hand.

3 So his brothers said to him, “Leave here and go to Judea, that your disciples also may see the works you are doing.

4 For no one works in secret if he seeks to be known openly. If you do these things, show yourself to the world.”

5 For not even his brothers believed in him.

Our human family, our kinfolk by birth, may not always be in agreement with us, and those family relationships can sometimes be difficult and divisive.

However, there is another kinship that Jesus describes, and that kinship is based on a common relationship with God. This is how Jesus describes it.

Mark 3:35 (ESV)

35 For whoever does the will of God, he is my brother and sister and mother.”

Are you a member of the family of God? The most important thing for God’s people is to be with Him. There is nothing that can compare with abiding in Christ.

Mark 3:14 (ESV)

14 And he appointed twelve (whom he also named apostles) so that they might be with him and he might send them out to preach.

Without God in our life, there is no way for us to make it through this world with all of its troubles, trials, and temptations we face daily.

John 15:5 (ESV)

5 I am the vine; you are the branches. Whoever abides in me and I in him, he it is that bears much fruit, for apart from me you can do nothing.

Prayer:

Father, hallowed be Your name. Father, I am so grateful for Your presence and power in the lives of Your people.

Father, help us to be devoted to our spiritual health by living in Your presence daily, and to follow the example of Jesus by being men and women of the Word, and prayer. Father, may we be hearers and doers of the Word. In the mighty name of Jesus I pray, Amen.

—

Isaiah 55:11 (KJV)
¹¹ So shall my word be that goeth forth out of my mouth: it shall not return unto me void, but it shall accomplish that which I please, and it shall prosper in the thing whereto I sent it.

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What Is Stealing Your Peace?

Text:

John 17:25-26 (HCSB)

25 Righteous Father! The world has not known You. However, I have known You, and these have known that You sent Me.

26 I made Your name known to them and will make it known, so the love You have loved Me with may be in them and I may be in them.

Observation:

The topic of today’s devotional brings to mind another question that is useful before considering the question posed by today’s title.

Do I have the peace of God living in me? This is a peace that God gives His people, and no one can take His peace from you.

Consider some of the things that cannot rob you of the peace of God:

pain
persecution
sickness
slander
hatred
lies

All of these things and more were faced by the servants of God. Additionally, they were faced by Jesus, and His disciples. Today, you may be facing one or more of these peace robbers.

Our focal passage is a portion of the prayer that Jesus prayed for His people, and that prayer includes you. I am so grateful that Jesus is praying for you and me.

John 17:20 (HCSB)

20 I pray not only for these, but also for those who believe in Me through their message.

The peace of God is a gift from God with Your name written on it. Believe Him, and receive your blessing.

John 14:1 (HCSB)

1 “Your heart must not be troubled. Believe in God; believe also in Me.

John 14:27 (HCSB)

27 “Peace I leave with you. My peace I give to you. I do not give to you as the world gives. Your heart must not be troubled or fearful.

Prayer:

Father, hallowed be Your name. Father, thank You for loving us with the same love that You loved Jesus.

Father, I thank You for pouring out Your love into our hearts by the Holy Spirit that You have given to us (Romans 5:5).

Father, I thank You that the Son that You so loved is also alive in our hearts.

Father, draw us nearer to You, and I pray that we would always remember the precious gifts that You have given us in Christ Jesus our Lord. In the mighty name of Jesus I pray, Amen.

—

Read the Daily Devotional by Herb Cotton; click here:

http://herbcotton.blogspot.com/

Hear the Daily Devotional by Herb Cotton; click here:

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What Happens When You Let God Abide?

Text:

John 15:4 (ESV)

4 Abide in me, and I in you. As the branch cannot bear fruit by itself, unless it abides in the vine, neither can you, unless you abide in me.

Observation:

One of the abiding truths that I read in the bible, and that I know through the hard School of Experience is that without God in my life that I can do nothing that will glorify Him. My only hope is in Christ alone; He is the solid foundation upon which I have chosen to build my life.

This hymn by Edward Mote expresses my hope and my faith:

“My hope is built on nothing less

Than Jesus Christ, my righteousness;

I dare not trust the sweetest frame,

But wholly lean on Jesus’ name.

Every hard thing we face in life can seem like mission impossible when God is not in it. However, when God is in it, every mountain seems like a molehill. My God can do anything but fail.

Luke 1:37 (ESV)

37 For nothing will be impossible with God.”

If the church is impotent today; if our lives are impotent today, a good place to examine is our prayer life.

I have heard that the average pastor prays less than 15 minutes a day. I recently read that couples spend less than 3 minutes of meaningful conversation together in a typical day. We don’t talk to God, and we don’t talk to our spouse in a meaningful way; yet, we spend 70% of our time communicating. Lord, we need to examine our heart, and our relationship with You. We need to take care of first things, and leave the rest in Your hands.

Prayer:

Father, hallowed be Your name; Lord, hasten the day when Your will is done on earth as it is in heaven.

Father, help each one of us to be part of the solution, and not part of the problem. Lord, helps us to focus on first things.

2 Chronicles 7:14-15 (NLT)

14 Then if my people who are called by my name will humble themselves and pray and seek my face and turn from their wicked ways, I will hear from heaven and will forgive their sins and restore their land.

15 My eyes will be open and my ears attentive to every prayer made in this place.

Father, I pray that You will find nothing in us that will prevent our prayers for the kingdom to come on earth as it is in heaven, or to hold back You restoring our homeland.

Lord, send a revival, and let it begin in me. In the mighty name of Jesus I pray, Amen.

—

Read the Daily Devotional by Herb Cotton; click here:

http://herbcotton.blogspot.com/

Hear the Daily Devotional by Herb Cotton; click here:

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Who Resides in Your Heart?

Text:

John 15:4-5 (ESV)

4 Abide in me, and I in you. As the branch cannot bear fruit by itself, unless it abides in the vine, neither can you, unless you abide in me.

5 I am the vine; you are the branches. Whoever abides in me and I in him, he it is that bears much fruit, for apart from me you can do nothing.

John 15:7 (ESV)

7 If you abide in me, and my words abide in you, ask whatever you wish, and it will be done for you.

Observation:

The longer I live, and the longer I serve Him, I know that the principal and practice of abiding in Christ is indispensable in living the abundant life that is the gift of God to His children.

The key is to have the Lord occupying your whole heart, and to allow the presence of Jesus in you to abide.

This truth came alive for me a few days ago when I was listening to a play list of gospel songs by the Gospel Legends on my computer.

The song “Let God Abide” was playing with the solo by the late Delois Barrett Campbell. These are the lyrics that spoke to me.

“The answer to all of your problems lies deep within your soul, if you let God abide”.

“He’ll hear your call and God will never let you fall if you let God abide.”

Prayer:

Father God, my prayer for my family, friends and my neighbors is that they each will invite Jesus to come into their heart, and allow Him to fill their whole heart.

Then Lord, they will have all they need deep within their soul to let God abide. Father, do for them what no other power can do. In the mighty name of Jesus I pray, Amen.

Jude 1:24-25 (HCSB)

24 Now to Him who is able to protect you from stumbling and to make you stand in the presence of His glory, blameless and with great joy,

25 to the only God our Savior, through Jesus Christ our Lord, be glory, majesty, power, and authority before all time, now and forever. Amen.