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"Christ was raised from the dead through the glory of the Father, so we too might walk in newness of life" (Romans 6:4).
Last
night we were visiting with our friends Ken and Nila on the back yard
deck when I heard one of the great sounds of Spring in our rural area.
The first harvest of the season! It was a John Deere wind-rower working
a field behind our house. The machine cuts the grass and then places it
in wind-rows. We ran out back to have a closer look and David was
pleased to ride on his dad's shoulders. However the loud noise wasn't
as pleasant as they worked the field across from our house through the
night, until 2:30 A.M!
Early this morning as the sun comes up and reveals a pale blue sky I ponder new life. The greening fields, the young calves in their hutches, and even the unpleasant odor of manure as farmers begin spreading this ever abounding, renewable fertilizer resource! Spring is a season of new life and what a powerful reminder it is today of God's call for all who follow Christ.
I want to focus on a single phrase in the daily Scripture portion. The apostle Paul is writing and by now is well along in his life as a Christian. It had been many years since he was dramatically converted on the road to Damascus. He was touched that day and transformed, beginning a long journey of growth in his faith and in active service for His Lord.
The Father sent Jesus that we might have new life. One of the great teachings of Christ was when he declared prior to His death, "I came that they may have life, and have it abundantly" (John 10:10).
Christ died for our sins and was indeed raised from the dead through the glory of the Father and He has ordained a new life for His redeemed children. The apostle Paul uses the 1st person plural indicating that this was a very personal experience for him, not merely an injunction to his readers. The sense of this "new life" is active and ongoing. The Amplified Bible expresses it "so that we too may habitually live and behave in newness of life."
Genuine conversion leads to a new life! The verb for live or walk is in the present tense. It seems we may have a tendency to see the "new life" as the time that immediately follows our conversion to Christ and it is indeed a real joy to experience this phase. But I accepted Christ nearly 40 years ago, some of you long before that and others more recently. We may feel this "newness of life" stage is long past. O, how we are mistaken!
Let us consider these words from the apostle Paul, who is surely very mature in his walk at this time. He speaks of living (present tense) in newness of life. So whether we are a new Christian or a seasoned veteran let us hear the word of the resurrected Lord and let us live this day in newness of life! My prayer for myself and for each reader: Lord, help us today to experience the new life you have given us!
Be encouraged today,
Stephen & Brooksyne Weber
Daily
prayer: Father,
as we embrace the cross of Calvary and apply Christ's redemptive blood
to our hearts we find newness of life. We are no longer bound by
the chains that fettered us to sin. What great liberty and
boundless joy to know that our names are written down in heaven.
If we set our hearts on this world we will wear down and lose the
joy that comes with newness of life. But as we set our hopes and
joys on the hereafter the joy of our salvation is ongoing, uplifting,
and a testimony to all who seek answers that this world cannot provide.
Thank You for raising Christ from the dead so that we can be redeemed
and walk in newness of life! In Jesus' name we pray. Amen.
After a long day on the road we are sure pleased to pull into our driveway. Our pets are pleased as well; they run to the fence, smile, wag their tails, and welcome us home!
Today's Suggested Music and Supplemental Resources
On
Sunday April 3 we began a forty day program of reading through the New
Testament and we encourage Daily Encouragement
Net
readers to consider joining in as we read/listen through the entire New
Testament in 40 days.
(At this point we suggest starting at the reading for the current day
and then reading the portions you hadn't read when the 40
day period
is over.)
These readings take about 30 minutes per day. Prior to each message we will provide a direct link to the Scripture portion to be read and listened to each day and for the next day. (and several links for the weekend daily readings).
The daily encouragement message for each weekday during the forty day period will be based on a portion of the text in the Bible reading for that day (or, on Mondays this may also be from a Scripture portion read over the weekend.)
Here is a page where you can download the entire Bible to your computer in a variety of versions.
Here's an overview of the plan I have prepared with practical tips (pdf)
Here's a schedule for the entire 40 day reading period along with discussion questions. This is especially suitable to bookmark during this period as it contains links that will open directly to the passage to be read for the day.
The
reading links open to Bible.is, an online Bible with
audio player and additional apps that you may find useful. For those who may prefer the KJV it is available.
For international readers there may even be a version available in your
native language. Just click the small tab directly below the Bible.is
logo on the top left to see available versions.
This Bible reading plan is a partnership of Daily Encouragement Net and Faith Comes By Hearing, a ministry which provides Bible listening resources all over the world. We will share more about this ministry in future messages.
Join
our Daily Encouragement Bible reading group on Facebook. You can read
and listen to the material directly on Facebook.
Tuesday,
April 26,
2011
The tulips in our front lawn are in full bloom and we marvel at the exquisite colors.
The tulips in our front lawn are in full bloom and we marvel at the exquisite colors.
40 Day New Testament
Reading/Listening Plan: We began a 40 day New Testament reading plan on April 3. If
you
want to participate and have not been following the reading schedule up
to this point we suggest starting with today's reading and
reading previous portions after this reading period ends. Here's the
entire 40 day schedule. More information concerning the Scripture reading
plan is
below
the daily message.
The links below will open to the selection to be read along with a built-in listening device.
The links below will open to the selection to be read along with a built-in listening device.
- Today's reading (April 26): Romans 5-10 beginning here.
- Tomorrow's reading (April 27): Romans 11- 1 Corinthians 1 beginning here.
"Walking In Newness Of Life"
"Christ was raised from the dead through the glory of the Father, so we too might walk in newness of life" (Romans 6:4).
Last
night we were visiting with our friends Ken and Nila on the back yard
deck when I heard one of the great sounds of Spring in our rural area.
The first harvest of the season! It was a John Deere wind-rower working
a field behind our house. The machine cuts the grass and then places it
in wind-rows. We ran out back to have a closer look and David was
pleased to ride on his dad's shoulders. However the loud noise wasn't
as pleasant as they worked the field across from our house through the
night, until 2:30 A.M!Early this morning as the sun comes up and reveals a pale blue sky I ponder new life. The greening fields, the young calves in their hutches, and even the unpleasant odor of manure as farmers begin spreading this ever abounding, renewable fertilizer resource! Spring is a season of new life and what a powerful reminder it is today of God's call for all who follow Christ.
I want to focus on a single phrase in the daily Scripture portion. The apostle Paul is writing and by now is well along in his life as a Christian. It had been many years since he was dramatically converted on the road to Damascus. He was touched that day and transformed, beginning a long journey of growth in his faith and in active service for His Lord.
The Father sent Jesus that we might have new life. One of the great teachings of Christ was when he declared prior to His death, "I came that they may have life, and have it abundantly" (John 10:10).
Christ died for our sins and was indeed raised from the dead through the glory of the Father and He has ordained a new life for His redeemed children. The apostle Paul uses the 1st person plural indicating that this was a very personal experience for him, not merely an injunction to his readers. The sense of this "new life" is active and ongoing. The Amplified Bible expresses it "so that we too may habitually live and behave in newness of life."
Genuine conversion leads to a new life! The verb for live or walk is in the present tense. It seems we may have a tendency to see the "new life" as the time that immediately follows our conversion to Christ and it is indeed a real joy to experience this phase. But I accepted Christ nearly 40 years ago, some of you long before that and others more recently. We may feel this "newness of life" stage is long past. O, how we are mistaken!
Let us consider these words from the apostle Paul, who is surely very mature in his walk at this time. He speaks of living (present tense) in newness of life. So whether we are a new Christian or a seasoned veteran let us hear the word of the resurrected Lord and let us live this day in newness of life! My prayer for myself and for each reader: Lord, help us today to experience the new life you have given us!
Be encouraged today,
Stephen & Brooksyne Weber
Daily
prayer: Father,
as we embrace the cross of Calvary and apply Christ's redemptive blood
to our hearts we find newness of life. We are no longer bound by
the chains that fettered us to sin. What great liberty and
boundless joy to know that our names are written down in heaven.
If we set our hearts on this world we will wear down and lose the
joy that comes with newness of life. But as we set our hopes and
joys on the hereafter the joy of our salvation is ongoing, uplifting,
and a testimony to all who seek answers that this world cannot provide.
Thank You for raising Christ from the dead so that we can be redeemed
and walk in newness of life! In Jesus' name we pray. Amen.After a long day on the road we are sure pleased to pull into our driveway. Our pets are pleased as well; they run to the fence, smile, wag their tails, and welcome us home!
Today's Suggested Music and Supplemental Resources
40 Day New Testament
Reading/Listening Plan
On
Sunday April 3 we began a forty day program of reading through the New
Testament and we encourage Daily Encouragement
Net
readers to consider joining in as we read/listen through the entire New
Testament in 40 days.
(At this point we suggest starting at the reading for the current day
and then reading the portions you hadn't read when the 40
day period
is over.) These readings take about 30 minutes per day. Prior to each message we will provide a direct link to the Scripture portion to be read and listened to each day and for the next day. (and several links for the weekend daily readings).
The daily encouragement message for each weekday during the forty day period will be based on a portion of the text in the Bible reading for that day (or, on Mondays this may also be from a Scripture portion read over the weekend.)
Here is a page where you can download the entire Bible to your computer in a variety of versions.
Here's an overview of the plan I have prepared with practical tips (pdf)
Here's a schedule for the entire 40 day reading period along with discussion questions. This is especially suitable to bookmark during this period as it contains links that will open directly to the passage to be read for the day.
The
reading links open to Bible.is, an online Bible with
audio player and additional apps that you may find useful. For those who may prefer the KJV it is available.
For international readers there may even be a version available in your
native language. Just click the small tab directly below the Bible.is
logo on the top left to see available versions. This Bible reading plan is a partnership of Daily Encouragement Net and Faith Comes By Hearing, a ministry which provides Bible listening resources all over the world. We will share more about this ministry in future messages.
Join
our Daily Encouragement Bible reading group on Facebook. You can read
and listen to the material directly on Facebook.Permissions:
Please feel free to pass on, reproduce and distribute any material on
Daily Encouragement Net, in part or in whole, in any format, provided
that you do not alter the wording in any way or charge a fee beyond the
cost of reproduction. It is our desire to spread this material, not
protect or restrict it. I do request that you keep the contact,
copyright and subscription information intact.
Text only version for printing: To make a text only version for printing (without photos or any of the supplemental materials)
1) Open the basic text editor that comes with all computers (known as wordpad, textpad, etc.) You can also use a program like Word and select paste text only.
2) Select and copy the text from the portion of the message you want to print.
3) Paste into the text pad. (The photos won't show up but you will have a brief text description of the photo which you can delete or just ignore.)
4) Format if you desire (change font, increase or decrease size, etc.)
5) Print!
Text only version for printing: To make a text only version for printing (without photos or any of the supplemental materials)
1) Open the basic text editor that comes with all computers (known as wordpad, textpad, etc.) You can also use a program like Word and select paste text only.
2) Select and copy the text from the portion of the message you want to print.
3) Paste into the text pad. (The photos won't show up but you will have a brief text description of the photo which you can delete or just ignore.)
4) Format if you desire (change font, increase or decrease size, etc.)
5) Print!
Scripture
references are from The Holy Bible: New International Version.
© 1984 by International Bible Society; NEW AMERICAN STANDARD
BIBLE®, Copyright © 1995 by The Lockman Foundation,
New King James
Version (NKJV) Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson, Inc. and the
King
James Version.
Personal
Mission Statement:
"I am created by God to bring Him glory. Through God's Son Jesus Christ
I have been redeemed and I make it my life's goal to please the Lord.
My mission in life is to honor God through my faith and obedience and
to prepare myself and all whom I may influence for eternity."
Daily
Encouragement Net is an affiliate of Christianbook.com
©
Copyright 2011
Stephen C. Weber - All Rights Reserved
Daily Encouragement Net - 495 Kraybill Church Road - Mount Joy, PA 17552 USA
Daily Encouragement Net - 495 Kraybill Church Road - Mount Joy, PA 17552 USA
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