Read the Bible in a Year (12OCT19)

DAILY REMINDER – Today, October 12’s Bible reading is Matthew 24-25.

NEXT DAY REMINDER – Tomorrow, October 13’s Bible reading is Matthew 26. May God bless you with the reading of His WORD.

MATTHEW MOMENT – (12OCT19) “As Jesus was sitting on the Mount of Olives, the disciples came to him privately. ‘Tell us,’ they said, ‘when will this happen, and what will be the sign of your coming and of the end of the age?’” (Matthew 24:3). Jesus, having looked at the temple, prophesied to the disciples by telling them that the temple would be destroyed. The disciples wanted to know when it would happen and the signs of the end times. Jesus told them that there would be nations and kingdoms rising against each other. There would be famines, earthquakes, persecution, martyrdom, a falling away from the faith, false prophets, and the love of many would grow cold. Jesus gave other signs that would take place towards the end, but He told them to always be ready because no one knew the day nor hour when He would return.

We have seen many of these signs take place and more are coming. The second temple was destroyed in 70 A.D. which fulfilled Jesus’ prophecy. When we see Turkey against Syria, Iran against Israel, and China along with Russia against the United States, we are seeing kingdom against kingdom. When we witness blacks against whites, conservatives against liberals, and civilians against peace officers – just to name a few, we are seeing nation against nation. We have and still are hearing of Christians being persecuted and martyred all across the world. Famines and earthquakes have taken place, and more are on the way. There has been a falling away from the principles of God in many of today’s compromised churches and the Bible speaks of a great falling away that will take place prior to the end. “Let no man deceive you by any means: for that day shall not come, except there come a falling away first, and that man of sin be revealed, the son of perdition” (2 Thessalonians 2:3). Yes, the man of sin, the antichrist, the one whom Jesus and the prophet Daniel spoke of will be revealed. We are seeing false teachers, preachers, and prophets popping up all over the world – including the Pope, and there is a love shortage everywhere. We see evidence of this when nations can slaughter innocent children and call it a woman’s choice. People can kill another human being without a second thought. Morality is gone out of the window for personal gain and political correctness. On top of that, as long as there is a dollar attached and some zeros, mostly anything goes in the government and even in the church. We are truly living in the last days, but all is coming to an end. We must stay at a posture of readiness for the Lord’s return because no matter how many date-setters there are out there, No One knows when Jesus will return. Nevertheless, He has told us to look at the signs and be ready. Something to ponder….

QUESTION OF THE DAY - (12OCT19) “For the kingdom of heaven is like a man traveling to a far country, who called his own servants and delivered his goods to them. And to one he gave five talents, to another two, and to another one, to each according to his own ability; and immediately he went on a journey” (Matthew 25:14-15). Jesus gave the parable of a man who had given his servants a certain amount of money. To the first, he gave five talents and the servant went and doubled his money. To the second was given two talents, and he went and doubled his money as well. To the last was given one talent, but the servant went and buried his. When the master came back, the first two servants were happy to report that they had doubled their money, and they were commended by their master. The last servant, however, made excuses as to why he buried his money, so he was considered as wicked by his master. The master took his one talent and gave it to the first servant instead. Jesus likened this parable to the Kingdom of Heaven.

There is another great lesson that can be learned from this parable. Every believer has been blessed with spiritual gifts from the Lord. Some have more than others, but they are all of equal value. The Bible says: “Having gifts that differ according to the grace given to us, let us use them: if prophecy, in proportion to our faith; if service, in our serving; the one who teaches, in his teaching; the one who exhorts, in his exhortation; the one who contributes, in generosity; the one who leads, with zeal; the one who does acts of mercy, with cheerfulness” (Romans 12:6-8). Not everyone will have the same gift nor the same number of gifts. Yet, whatever gifting that the Holy Spirit gives to us, we are to minister using them with all due diligence and excellence. In the parable, the servant who only had the one talent went and hid his because he failed to appreciate the value of that one talent. Similarly, many Christians carry on in the same manner.

Oftentimes, there are Christians who act as if they are in competition with one another when it comes to their giftings. They pout, protest, get angry and even will not use their gifts in the church when it does not benefit them to do so. Nevertheless, to be honest, none of us had anything to do with the gifts that the Lord gives. He gives according to His pleasure, and we are to use our gifts for His edification and not our own. Regardless of if you have one gift or multiple gifts, use them to the best of your ability to glorify God. He is a rewarder of the faithful and when we show that we appreciate what He has already given to us, He is all too willing to bless us with more in accordance to His will. Something to ponder….