Devotional Song: … GO TO THIS LINK … Please take the time to take in a YouTube video with images and lyrics from Matthew West singing … Broken Things … powerfully singing of the reality that in the race to get into heaven, the winners in this world will be last and the last in God’s kingdom will be first.
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Highlight Verse[s]: Matthew 19:30 [NLT] … 30 But many who are the greatest now will be least important then, and those who seem least important now will be the greatest then.
… Jesus teaching on who will be first and left behind in the race for heaven’s glory.
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Highlight Passage [context]: Matthew 19:16-30 [NLT] … USE THIS LINK …
… Jesus shocks His disciples with His teaching on who would be the winners in the race for eternal glory.
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Reference Passage : … Mark 9:34-35 [NLT] … 34 But they didn’t answer, because they had been arguing about which of them was the greatest. 35 He sat down, called the twelve disciples over to him, and said, “Whoever wants to be first must take last place and be the servant of everyone else.” … Jesus makes it clear as to whom will be favored in heaven.
Reference Passage : … Luke 9:23 [NLT] … 23 Then He said to the crowd, “If any of you wants to be my follower, you must give up your own way, take up your cross daily, and follow me. …”
… Jesus’ simple (but very difficult) command to be His disciple by diligently following Him.
Reference Passage : … 2 Timothy 4:6-8 [NLT] … USE THIS LINK …
… The Apostle Paul knew how to run the race for God’s glory. Do we?
My Devotional Journal: Today's ODB author, Winn Collier, used a sports analogy to teach on our striving to win the right to enter God’s forever kingdom. The ODB author wrote … Perhaps the most preposterous, spellbinding moment in the 2018 Winter Olympics was when the Czech Republic’s world champion snowboarder Ester Ledecka won an event in a completely different sport: skiing! And she took the first-place gold medal even though she had the unenviable position of skiing 26th—a feat believed to be basically impossible [see photo].
Amazingly, Ledecka qualified to race the women’s super-G—an event that combines downhill skiing with a slalom course. After she won by .01 of a second on borrowed skis, she was just as shocked as the media and other contestants who had assumed the winner would be one of the top skiers.
And the ODB author has painted an interesting worldly picture of what Jesus taught His disciples about who will be the winners/losers in our striving to enter the kingdom of heaven.
And as Jesus taught, contrary to the way the world judges our racing about in this world, … it will be the last ones, … the ones who strive the most to serve others, who will be the winners in God’s kingdom (see Scriptures above). The Apostle Paul knew how to run that race for glory (see 2Timothy 4:6-8)
So, as we strive to honor God and work out our salvation, for His glory, are we running His race the way He desires or are we trying to run by the rules and expectations of the world?
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My THANKFULNESS: … Oh Abba Father, … thank You, Lord, … for showing us the way to prepare for this race we call life by the rules given to us in God’s word.
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My Prayer Today: Oh Abba Father, … King Jesus, … I pray, Lord, that all reading here can, and will, join me, … striving to run the race of life by His rules. … Amen
Blogger Note: Everyday during this year, my daily devotional blogs are influenced by the reading and study of the online devotional blog entitled “Our Daily Bread,” distributed online via email by RBC Ministries. If you GO TO THIS LINK on the date of my blog, you can read/study the ODB blogs; or you can subscribe to the blog via email at that site.
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