Five books down and 61 more to go!
I found so much encouragement in these three small books of the Bible written by the apostle John - the disciple whom "Jesus loved" - and boy does he ever have lots to say about overcoming, learning to love, and living in Truth.
Here are my S.O.A.P.s for the Scripture verses that stood out to me in my daily reading. I hope you'll share your thoughts in the comments at the end of this post. :)
Monday, September 22, 2014
1 John 5
Scripture: 1 John 5:4 For whatever is
born of God overcomes the world. And this is the victory that has overcome the
world—our faith.
Observations: Love this commentary
from Matthew Henry: “The real Christian overcomes the world by faith; he
sees, in and by the life and conduct of the Lord Jesus on earth, that this
world is to be renounced and overcome. He cannot be satisfied with this world,
but looks beyond it, and is still tending, striving, and pressing toward
heaven. We must all, after Christ's example, overcome the world, or it will
overcome us to our ruin.”
Application: This world with Satan
roaming it seeking to steal, kill and destroy has been overcome by the victory
of Jesus Christ on the cross. As a child of God, my faith in Jesus gives me the
victory in the opposition I face in this world – namely Satan and his attacks.
The shield of faith is one of the
pieces of the Armor of God that is mine as a child of God and with it I am able
to extinguish the fiery darts of Satan (Ephesians 6:16).
Walk by faith, not by sight. This
world and its troubles are only temporary. I am a child of God and my Heavenly
home awaits me. Put on the whole Armor of God every.single.day.
Prayer: Heavenly Father, thank You
for the victory that is mine already as I walk by faith in the victorious name
of Jesus Christ. He has already overcome Satan and this world by His death on
the cross and by His resurrection from the grave. Help me to keep my eyes on Jesus
as I walk through the valleys of this world. Help me to remember that this
world and its struggles are only temporary. Help me to take up my shield of
faith every day so that I can extinguish the fiery darts of Satan as he tries
to come against me. I pray and ask this all in the victorious name of Jesus.
Amen!
Tuesday, September 23, 2014
2 John 1
Scripture: 2 John 1:1-3 The Elder, to the elect lady and her children, whom I love in truth, and not only I, but also all those who have known the truth, 2 because of the truth which abides in us and will be with us forever: 3 Grace, mercy, and peace will be with you from God the Father and from the Lord Jesus Christ, the Son of the Father, in truth and love.
Observation: Love and truth bind
Christians together. God is love (1 John 4:8) and God is truth (John 14:6; 1
John 5:6). God abides in us and will be with us forever. The Christian
blessings of grace, mercy, and peace will always be with us from God and from
Jesus.
Application: It is because of the Spirit of God that lives
within me that I have been empowered to know the truth of God and to love
others as I have been commanded to do. I have His grace (His empowering
presence, divine favor and good-will), His mercy (free pardon and forgiveness),
and His peace (tranquility of spirit and serenity of conscience, in an assured
reconciliation with God). Since I have received these Christian blessings from
God, I should willingly extend them to others in my life. This is how I should
love others: with the same grace, mercy, and peace that I have received in my
own life from God and from Jesus.
Prayer: Heavenly Father, thank You for Your love, Your
truth, Your grace, Your mercy, and Your peace that are all mine as Your child.
Thank You for the Holy Spirit that lives inside me. Help me to surrender daily
to Your power at work within me so that I can extend all these blessings in the
lives of those you have placed in my life. Thank You for Your presence in my
life that is with me forever. Help me to be a forever presence to those You
have placed in my life so that they will feel well loved. Lord, when we love
this way, we can truly show the world that we belong to You. We can shine forth
Your love to people who are blindly walking in this world feeling unloved and
by doing so are getting trapped in counterfeits that will only destroy them. I
pray that the cycle of counterfeit loves this world offers will be stopped as
Your Church steps up and truly loves others as You have called us to. In the
powerful and loving name of Jesus I pray. Amen!
Wednesday, September 24, 2014
3 John 1:4
Scripture: 3 John 1:4 I have no
greater joy than to hear that my children walk in truth.
Observations: John spoke these words
in verse 4 after receiving word of the faithfulness of Gaius, a fellow believer
who was continuing to walk in the truth of the person and work of Jesus Christ.
Gaius was living in obedience to the commandments of God to love Him and love
others. This brought the apostle John great joy.
Application: I love my children and
it is my great joy to know that they walk in the truth of who Jesus Christ is
and that He died for the forgiveness of their sins. My prayer for them is that
they would continually walk in obedience to the commandments of God to love Him
and to love others as He has so lavishly loved them.
Prayer: Heavenly Father, thank You
for my daughter and for my son. I pray that they would continue to walk in a
close personal relationship with You all the days of their lives. I pray that
they would love others as You have loved them and walk in obedience to all that
is in Your Word. Help me to live a Godly example in front of them and when I
mess up I pray that they will see perseverance on my part to never give up. I
pray that through me they will see that they can depend on You and on Your strength
and forgiveness. I ask this all in the life-changing name of Jesus. Amen!
Just as a quick reminder, here is our reading plan for the rest of this week.
To read all of my posts in this #BloggingThroughtheBible series, please click on the image below.
Walking in His Grace,
Laurie
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