Author: Nathaniel Colt

Read about It

Read: Luke 17:15–19

Imagine for a moment that you are wanting to give the most perfect gift to someone special. You spend time searching for just the right thing that you think they’ll love. You do some extra jobs to make some enough money to pay for it. When you buy it, you make sure to wrap it carefully, so it looks perfect. Then you give it to them, and they look at it before walking off without ever saying thank you or telling you if they like it. That would be hurtful, wouldn’t it?

Jesus could have demanded that the other nine men come back and thank Him, but He didn’t. He wants us to worship Him and thank Him because we want to and because we love Him. For the one leper who came back, it was an immediate response. As soon as he saw that he was healed, he came back to Jesus and started praising and thanking Him. This should be our attitude, too.

Read about It

Read: Luke 17:11–14

When someone in Bible times had leprosy, they were separated from the rest of the people and forced to live outside of their village. People were afraid that their disease was contagious and deadly. If the sick person came close to someone else, they had to yell from a distance, “Unclean.” This disease destroyed lives. When Jesus healed all ten of these men suffering from leprosy, He not only healed them physically, but He also changed their entire lives. They could return to their families and friends and live normal lives again.

When we think about all that God has done for us, we are reminded that without Him, we would have nothing. His goodness can be seen in every part of our life. Because of what He has done for us, our life is changed forever. He is so good to us and deserves every bit of worship, honor, and gratitude that we can give Him.

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Read: Acts 10:44–48; 11:1–3, 15–18

Peter had an experience that turned his thinking upside down. All of his life, his teachers probably taught him that people who weren’t Jewish were unclean. Being Jewish, his leaders may have told him to stay away from these people, Gentiles. He probably didn’t eat with them or enter their house. So, when God gave Peter a vision that led to Cornelius, a Gentile, and his family being saved and filled with the Holy Spirit, Peter was amazed. The people he thought were unclean had now been made clean by Jesus. The Holy Spirit filled them with His power, and God transformed their lives.

When Peter returned to tell the other believers, they criticized him. But, the Holy Spirit changed their hearts when Peter took a stand and explained what God was doing. The Holy Spirit was giving them a new way of thinking. Because Peter took a stand for God’s leading, more people came to know Jesus.

As we witness and share the gospel with others, let’s always follow the Holy Spirit as He leads us. The Holy Spirit led Peter to the Gentiles, and he saw a mighty work of God. The Holy Spirit also guided him to share what had happened and strengthen the believers in Judea. Peter followed the Holy Spirit’s lead and kept his heart and mind open to what God wanted to do. As we rely on help from the Holy Spirit, our heart will be open to what God is doing. When we rely on Him, it means that we depend on the Holy Spirit to lead us. When the Holy Spirit guides us to share, we should share. God will be with us and teach us the way to go when we pay attention to the amazing things He is doing.

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Read: 1 Corinthians 15:58; 16:13–14

In Paul’s letters that he wrote to churches, he sometimes wrote about people’s work for the Lord. He thanked believers in different cities and praised them for their faith and standing firm in Jesus. Paul took a stand for Jesus and never gave up on his commitment to Him. Paul spent his life spreading the gospel and helping new believers wherever they were. He encouraged the believers to keep obeying Jesus even when they had opposition. Paul knew that there would be trials and problems. He knew that believers needed to hear the message of these verses. Paul’s words encourage us too as we read his words and receive strength.

Like Paul, we can encourage others to follow Jesus. Everyone needs to hear the good news of Jesus. Every believer in Jesus has people to share the gospel with that God has placed in their life. We can pray for our friends to be courageous and strong. We can talk to others and share Jesus’ love with them. We can also encourage others to stand up for Jesus. In all these ways, we strengthen believers. We remind them that we are to win as many people as possible for Jesus. Let’s keep working for God. It’s always worth it.

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Read: Acts 4:1–4

Being full of the Holy Spirit made Peter and John bold to share about Jesus. They had already seen signs, wonders, and miracles. Many people had already come to faith and believed in Jesus because of the disciples sharing about Him. Because Peter and John had been with Jesus, they wanted to tell everybody about Jesus rising from the dead. But talk about Jesus being raised from the dead made the priests, Sadducees, and captain of the temple guard angry. They didn’t believe that Jesus was alive again. So, they arrested Peter and John.

But did this stop the message of Jesus from spreading? No! The number of people who believed because of the disciples’ preaching grew by thousands. The Jewish leaders couldn’t stop the good news from spreading. Because Peter and John took a stand and preached the gospel, their words went further than they could imagine.

The gospel message has spread for about two thousand years because people have taken a stand and told others about Jesus. Many have tried to stop the message from spreading. But, the number of people who believe in and follow Jesus just keeps on growing. When we take a stand and declare that we believe in Jesus, others get to hear about Jesus and accept Him as their Savior. Remember, it isn’t about us or the words we say. When we take a stand, the Holy Spirit works in those who hear the good news. God draws people near to Him. All we need to do is share the good news and live obediently to Jesus.

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Read: Acts 4:12–21

Standing before the council, Peter and John spoke boldly about who Jesus was. The leaders had asked what happened (Acts 3:1–8), but they were amazed by the boldness of Peter and John. They knew that Peter and John were ordinary men with no special training in the Scriptures. They recognized that Peter and John had spent time as Jesus’ disciples.

Even more amazing, the healed man was standing right in front of them. Since they couldn’t argue with the evidence, they let Peter and John go and told them never to speak or teach in the name of Jesus. This was a moment of decision for Peter and John. They chose to stand up for Jesus. They refused to stop telling people about Jesus. Everyone praised God for what He had done through these two committed disciples who took a stand for Jesus.

The Jewish leaders could tell that Peter and John were committed to Jesus. They stood boldly and spoke powerfully about Jesus. We can too! Our testimony about what Jesus has done for us declares that Jesus is our Savior. We show our love for Him when we are faithful in going to church and reading our Bible. Like Peter and John, when we boldly tell others about Jesus, our life draws others to Jesus and the good news He brings.

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Read: Joshua 24:14–18

The Jewish people had made it to the Promised Land. God had provided for them and helped them to win battles time and again. Now it was time to live in the land that God had promised. So, Joshua called together the people to remember their promise to the Lord. God had brought them from slavery, through the wilderness, and into the Promised Land. Would they continue to serve Him? Joshua boldly declared, “As for me and my family, we will serve the LORD.” The people shouted back that they would too. This moment was a commitment for each family and their future children They chose to follow God alone. Their words were a promise that they would be strong and follow God.

What about you and your family? You may go to church, pray, and read your Bible together. You may even talk about what God is doing for you or how to serve Him best. But, have you declared your trust in God as a family? Our words have power. When we decide to declare that we will serve the Lord as a family, this shows where we stand. We won’t turn this way or that, but we will serve God no matter what. It is our reminder of what we will do when serving God—going to church, praying as a family, or reading the Bible—gets difficult. Let’s declare our decision today, that we will serve the Lord.

Read about It

Read: 1 Kings 3:3–14; 11:9–13

Solomon was King David’s son and a great king of Israel. At the beginning of his reign, he didn’t ask God for wealth or possessions. Instead, he asked for wisdom to rule God’s people. Because of this, God blessed him abundantly. He had wealth and riches. He built the temple of the Lord and a beautiful, majestic palace. People came from far and wide to hear his wisdom. He sacrificed to the Lord and dedicated the temple to God. Solomon had absolutely everything, and it all came from God. While Solomon started strong, he did not finish well. He sacrificed to the gods of his wives. God had warned him against this, but Solomon disobeyed. The entire kingdom felt the effects of this leader’s disobedience.

Why did Solomon let his heart turn away from God? Solomon turned away from God because of the daily choices that he made. One little bad choice probably didn’t seem like a big deal, especially when he had done so many great things. But one little choice can lead to another and another. And eventually, they can lead away from God. While bad decisions can lead us away, good decisions made each day help us to stand firm. Reading our Bible, praying, worshipping, giving, and serving are all excellent choices. Also, standing on God’s promises, telling Jesus how much we love Him, and making space for Him to work in our life keeps us strong in faith. The daily choices we make to follow Jesus will keep us strong all of our life.

Read about It

Read: Luke 23:44–48

Jesus’ final moments show us His strength to follow God’s plan. The sky was dark. He was in terrible pain. He could have chosen to get angry at God because of His suffering. He could have refused to be sacrificed. Instead, Jesus shouted, “Father, I entrust my spirit into your hands!” In the face of pain and suffering, Jesus was strong and obeyed God until the end. Through this key moment in Jesus’ life, His mission on earth was complete, and our salvation was paid for.

When we follow God, there will be times when voices may tell us to give up. But our finishing moment completes the work that we have done for the Lord. Ending well is the most crucial part of our faith journey. The crowd may tell us to quit, or that living for Jesus isn’t worth it. We may even be tempted to live for ourself and our desires only. But we must stay strong and obey God as Jesus did.

So don’t stop praying for friend who needs Jesus. Don’t give up when you are witnessing to a friend. Keep doing the good work even when it is hard. When we follow God until the end, people will truly see Jesus in our life.