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All of us at NFI look back on 2022 with amazement at all God has done. We have been very privileged to have a tiny part of His glorious work in many places around the world. It makes me think of how Paul look back on his life and ministry and said with confidence, “I have fought the good fight, I have finished the race, I have kept the faith” (2 Timothy 4:7).
We cannot speak with the same confidence that Paul did, but we can say that through many challenges, the Lord has been faithful help us plant seeds of His Word in many hearts. Some of those who have gone through our training have been transformed by the Holy Spirit working through the Word and are very excited about what they are seeing and learning for the first time. Others have shown interest, but the soil is more difficult. We are praying for their hearts to be enlightened by the Spirit. No matter what the results, we look forward with the same glorious prospect that Paul had; Henceforth there is laid up for me [us] the crown of righteousness, which the Lord, the righteous judge, will award to me on that day, and not only to me but also to all who have loved his appearing” (8). As 2022 closes and you look back on what was done for the Lord, what would you expect in reward from Him?
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Part of establishing our faith in the Lord Jesus is a daily diet of feeding on God’s Word. To help and encourage you in this habit, we offer this Bible Reading Schedule for 2023. Remember, as you read through the Word of God, that it is Truth. Truth is a Person, Jesus Christ, the Living Word of God, and all Scripture points to Christ. Note that this is your personal quiet time with the Lord, so you will not be discussing it with others at that particular moment. You might later want to discuss with others what you have learned by chewing on the meat of the Word.
Use the link below to download the Bible Reading Schedule to your computer, print a copy and put it in your Bible so it is there for daily reading. https://www.dropbox.com/s/xmd6se0wyogcj5u/BIBLE%20READING%20SCHEDULE.docx?dl=0 If your have any difficulty downloading this file, send an email to: [email protected] and we will send you a separate file or a hard copy. Are prayer is that you will experience a new joy and excitement in reading God’s Word. After write the blog yesterday, I began thinking of my own life and how God has been so good to me every day! Then my mind went Psalm 116.
“What shall I render to the Lord for all His benefits to me? I will lift up the cup of salvation and call on the name of the Lord, I will pay my vows to the Lord in the presence of all His people” (Psalm 116:12–14). The greatest thanks I can give the Lord for all His grace, goodness, and kindness is to rejoice in my salvation. Though I have failed in many ways, there are commitments I have made to the Lord which I will live out with the help of the Holy Spirit. They are never a ‘repayment’ in any sense, but they are a deep desire to bring Him praise and glory. Perhaps “grace” is one of the hardest spiritual concepts for us to understand. The word “charis” means “to show kindness as a gift and good will” toward someone who does not deserve kindness.
Considering that we were all “dead in the trespasses and sin…[and] once lived in the passions of our flesh”(Ephesians 2:1, 3), how can God show grace and kindness to us? Paul gives us the answer in this same portion of Scripture. “But God, being rich in mercy, because of the great love with which He loved us, even when we were dead in our trespasses, made us alive together with Christ—by grace you have been saved--” (2:4–5). The character of God stands behind His actions of grace. Thus, the sharp contrast between our sinful condition and what He has done for us helps us understand the wonder of this free gift of grace. “The Gospel message of Jesus Christ is all about learning to pick up our cross and follow Him (Matthew 16:24). At times, this means persevering through hardships and persecution. But we need not fret—for our reward is great!”
Billy Graham “If the world hates you, know that it has hated me before it hated you” (John 15:18). As the day of remembering Jesus Christ’s birth and the wonder of all He did to reveal God’s glory and redeem us, I pause to remember something else, the persecuted. Some suffer unbelievable abuse, some die for the name of Jesus and the Word of God. The value of Christ’s coming is not a religion or events in the past but the fruit of a relationship that was birthed in us who believe by the Holy Spirit.
As I prayed for those who are still with us in suffering, asking the Lord to strengthen their faith and resolve to remain faithful, I thought of John’s record: “When he opened the fifth seal, I saw under the altar the souls of those who had been slain for the word of God and for the witness they had borne. They cried out with a loud voice, “O Sovereign Lord, holy and true, how long before you will judge and avenge our blood on those who dwell on the earth?” Then they were each given a white robe and told to rest a little longer, until the number of their fellow servants and their brothers should be complete, who were to be killed as they themselves had been” (Revelation 6:9–11). While we feel trapped by earth and time with no seeming evidence that God is going to end the suffering of His people, God’s agenda is right on time. It is easy to get consumed with the chaos of this world and the unjust actions of rulers, so we must turn our attention to the moment when God will close this chapter of suffering and open the next with eternal glory and exaltation of Jesus. “Behold, He is coming with the clouds, and every eye will see Him, even those who pierced Him, and all tribes of the earth will wail on account of Him. Even so. Amen” (Revelation 1:7). “His reward is with Him and His recompense before Him” (Isaiah 40:10; 62:11). Press on and be faithful. “And the Word became flesh and dwelt among us, and we have seen His glory, glory as of the only Son from the Father, full of grace and truth” (John 1:14).
“That which was from the beginning, which we have heard, which we have seen with our eyes, which we looked upon and have touched with our hands, concerning the word of life— the life was made manifest, and we have seen it, and testify to it and proclaim to you the eternal life, which was with the Father and was made manifest to us— that which we have seen and heard we proclaim also to you, so that you too may have fellowship with us; and indeed our fellowship is with the Father and with his Son Jesus Christ” (1 John 1:1–3). How thankful we must be that eyewitnesses have recorded by the Spirit what they saw and personally experience so that we might enjoy the same fellowship. There is no other human experience like it anywhere on earth! Was the night Jesus was born really silent, as the Christmas Carol says? Putting aside poetic license for a moment, and I love the song, was this pivotal event in history met with no celebration? We know from Luke 2:13-14 that “suddenly there was with the angel a multitude of the heavenly host praising God and saying, “Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace among those with whom He is pleased!”” Perhaps it was just the shepherds who heard this celestial choir, but there is no mistaking that heaven was ecstatic with joy over the birth of Jesus!
Why was this moment so moving to heaven? I have a sense that these heavenly beings knew far more than we give them credit for. Did they look beyond Jesus’ birth to:
The list could go on and on with all the things that filled heaven with exuberant, holy worship over the birth of Jesus and all it contained. Are you? These events on the divine calendar should dictate how we live each day. “But when the fullness of time had come, God sent forth His Son, born of woman, born under the law, to redeem those who were under the law, so that we might receive adoption as sons” (Galatians 4:4–5).
“For God did not send His Son into the world to condemn the world, but in order that the world might be saved through Him” (John 3:17). “Truly, truly, I say to you, whoever hears My word and believes Him who sent Me has eternal life. He does not come into judgment but has passed from death to life” (John 5:24). “No one can come to me unless the Father who sent me draws him. And I will raise him up on the last day” (John 6:44). God’s plan and purpose for mankind all hinged on His Son being sent into the world. Jesus arrived just at the time that God set for this event to happen. Paul uses the word plêrõma for “fullness” which means “the totality of a period of time, with the implication of proper completion”.[1] It was time to introduce a relationship with God on the basis of one sacrifice – God’s sinless Son – not the blood of animals. The ‘time” of the Law was over because it could never do this to provide this relationship. It had to be a relationship founded on faith in a perfect Son, NOT works of law. As you gather this weekend with family and friends, give thanks for God’s perfect timing. [1] Louw, J. P., & Nida, E. A. (1996). Greek-English lexicon of the New Testament: based on semantic domains(electronic ed. of the 2nd edition., Vol. 1, p. 637). New York: United Bible Societies. We had one of those very special Zoom prayer times this evening with some of our NFI team. It is truly amazing how the Lord has spread this ministry across the globe with only a few of us. I will give you a quick overview of events and places that were part of our discussion and prayers.
Randy was so helpful to point us to the many times Jesus refers to God the Father sending Jesus His Son (John 3:17; 17:3; 20:21; and many more). Then Jesus sends us out in the same way. “Jesus said to them again, “Peace be with you. As the Father has sent me, even so I am sending you”” (John 20:21). We are sent on the same mission that the Father sent Jesus. This is both a privilege and a responsibility. Please join us in prayer for each of these trips and events. We want nothing less than God’s work done His way for His glory! |
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