Displaying Christian Sermons by tag: Christ
Joyce Meyer (February-17-2023) Daily Devotion: Righteous in Christ.
Do you feel all wrong about yourself? I know that I did for much of my life, and it made me totally miserable. I frustrated myself trying to do lots of good things in hopes that I might feel better about myself, but it was never a permanent solution.
God offers us a new way of living through faith in Jesus Christ. He offers us righteousness as a gift, to be received through faith. We can feel right about ourselves, not because we do everything right, but because we have been made right by an act of God’s great grace and mercy. The minute you believe this truth, the bur- den you’ve been carrying will lift off of you, and peace and joy will come.
Your sins were all paid for when Jesus took them upon Himself and took the punishment that you deserved when He died on the cross. See yourself the way He sees you: washed clean and completely right with Him. Believe God’s Word more than you believe anything else and start living a brand-new way!
Prayer Starter: Father, thank You for making me right with You! Help me to receive your forgiveness by faith, to live without condemnation, and to walk in Your grace today. In Jesus’ Name, Amen.
Joseph Prince (January-18-2021) Daily Devotion: BE CHRIST-CONSCIOUS.
Ephesians 1:7 - In Hiim we have redemption through His blood, the forgiveness of sins, according to the riches of His grace
Have you ever woken up in the morning and said, “Today, I will not sin.” And as you leave your house, you say, “I must be careful not to fall into sin today. I don’t want to sin. I will not sin!” My friend, when you do this, you are no longer Christ-conscious but sin-conscious, even though you have not sinned yet.
Men, have you ever caught yourself thinking, “I don’t want to look at any woman in case I lust”? You are being sin-conscious when you think like that. And sooner or later, you will lust in your heart. You may not sin outwardly, but you will sin inwardly.
Have you also tried confessing every sin? I have! As a teenager, when a bad thought came, I would quickly say, “I’m sorry, Lord. Forgive me for this thought in Jesus’ name.” Then, another thought would come and I would quickly say, “Forgive me, Lord, for that thought in Jesus’ name.” Then, if I happen to doubt His forgiveness, I would confess my unbelief and ask for forgiveness: “Forgive me, Lord, for doubting You.” Before I knew it, I was oppressed in my mind and so sin-conscious instead of Christ-conscious!
My friend, when you fall into sin, God wants you to be Christ-conscious. This means that when you have missed it, God wants you to be conscious that in Christ, you have forgiveness of sins through His blood. God wants you to be conscious that Christ was wounded and bruised for your sins, and that the chastisement for your peace was upon Him (see Isaiah 53:5).
When you are Christ-conscious, you will have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ (see Romans 5:1). You will know that you are the righteousness of God in Christ because He who knew no sin was made sin for you (see 2 Corinthians 5:21). He took your sin and now you have His righteousness.
So when you fall, don’t be conscious of your failure and feel bad or condemned. Instead, be conscious of who you are in Christ, pick yourself up, dust yourself off and continue your walk with God!
Joel Osteen (September-19-2022) Today's Word: Christ Makes Everything New.
TODAY'S SCRIPTURE: Create in me a clean heart, O God, and renew a right spirit within me. Psalm 51:10, ESV
TODAY'S WORD: With the new year comes fresh starts, resolutions and new beginnings. It is a time for making plans, setting goals and writing visions. But the greatest "new start" of all comes through Jesus Christ. Second Corinthians 5:17 says, "Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a NEW creation; old things have passed away; behold, all things have become new." If you need a new beginning this year in any area of your life, allow Christ to make you a new creation, and the old will pass away! He will put a new and right spirit within you when you call on His name!
This year, make your relationship with Him your number one priority. When you put God first place and make it your highest priority to please Him, you can expect to live a blessed, fulfilled life. Scripture states, “God is a rewarder of those who diligently seek Him.” Notice who God rewards. Not people who half-heartedly seek Him, only seek Him when they have a problem, or come to church only on special occasions. God rewards people who diligently seek Him. Psalm 34:10 adds: “Those who seek the Lord shall not lack any good thing.” When you seek God daily with your whole heart in this new year, you won’t be able to outrun the good things of God!
PRAYER FOR TODAY: Father, as we enter into a new year, I choose to put You first. Wipe the slate clean as I develop a deeper personal relationship with You. Thank You for new beginnings as I walk every day with You in Jesus' name! Amen.
Joseph Prince (November-17-2020) Daily Devotion: CHRIST IS THE TREASURE IN YOU.
2 Corinthians 4:7 - But we have this treasure in earthen vessels, that the excellence of the power may be of God and not of us.
The verse tells us that we have “this treasure” in earthen vessels. Who is the treasure? Christ! Who are the earthen vessels here? You and I! Thank God the treasure is in the earthen vessels.
My friend, Christ the treasure is in you. So don’t get frustrated when you see your “earthiness.” You will always be “earthen” as long as you are in your mortal body, but remember that Christ the treasure is in you.
Should you lose your cool with your spouse or children, remember that Christ in you is your patience. When I feel impatient, I don’t pray, “Lord Jesus, give me patience...now!” No, I look to Jesus and I say, “Lord Jesus, I thank You that You are my patience.”
In my younger days and even when I first got married, I had a bad temper. I tried all sorts of anger management techniques, but I never got very far until I told God, “God, I am so frustrated trying to overcome my anger. I give up! I cannot. You can. I rest and depend on You.” Not too long after that, my wife commented, “You know, you have improved in the area of your temper.”
I thought about what she had said and realized that I was not even conscious of the change in me. When family members can see the patience of Christ manifesting through a naturally impatient person, God gets the glory.
Perhaps you are frustrated with your smoking and drinking habits. Or maybe you are discouraged by your feelings of jealousy, distrust, bitterness, depression and defeat. Don’t condemn yourself for being earthen. Don’t try to “cast out” your earthiness. Just realize that you have Christ the treasure in you.
The more you see that treasure in you, the more Christ’s brilliance shines forth in you. And in the midst of your earthiness, God gets the glory as you yourself are transformed from glory to glory (see 2 Corinthians 3:18)!
Charles Stanley Daily Devotion: New Creatures in Christ.
At the moment of salvation, a person becomes a new creature in Christ. Some of us may have felt the change as the burden of sin was lifted and replaced with forgiveness and hope. But what if we didn’t feel anything? Are we still saved?
Salvation is a result of hearing the gospel and responding in repentance and faith. Emotion may accompany the transformation but doesn’t determine its validity. Becoming a new creation involves much more than our emotions:
A New Position. Before salvation, we were enemies of God, but through Christ’s death on our behalf, we have been reconciled to Him and have become His beloved children. With His death on the cross, Jesus paid the penalty for all our sins. And what’s more, His righteousness was then credited to us in a legal transaction the Bible calls justification.
A New Presence. At the moment of salvation, the Holy Spirit took up residence within us. He works to transform us in a process called sanctification, whereby we become increasingly righteous in practice.
A New Power. Because we still struggle with sin and selfishness, living up to God’s standard is beyond our own abilities. But when the Holy Spirit came into our life, He brought with Him the power of almighty God, which enables us to become and do whatever He desires.
What we have now is the seed of what we will eventually become. Although at present it’s difficult to discern the changed life of a Christian, it will be evident when Jesus returns and brings our bodies into conformity with His glorious body (Phil. 3:21).
Joseph Prince (October-23-2020) Daily Devotion: SEE YOURSELF IN CHRIST.
Ephesians 1:3 - Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us with every spiritual blessing in the heavenly places in Christ,
I remember going through a terrible time of depression when I was 18 years old. Believing that I was demon-possessed, I sought out a great man of God to have him cast the devil out of me. But when this man of God laid hands on me, he began to prophesy over me. He said, “Joe, I see you preaching to thousands and used by God to impact thousands of lives. Joe, you are called by God and the devil is attempting to stop you.”
“What? I came here for deliverance! I am only interested in saving my own life, not preaching nor impacting lives,” I thought to myself then.
You see, what happened was that at that moment, God allowed this man to step into the timeless zone He exists in to bring my future before me. As far as God was concerned, my future had already happened, though I was only 18 years old then. Today, I am a pastor of a church which has more than 30,000 members. Today, I am seeing what was told to me long ago.
God does not see as we see. Abraham was a childless, 100-year-old man. His wife, Sarah, at 90 years old, was doubly dead in her womb (see Genesis 17:17). Yet, God saw him and talked to him as if he were already the father of many nations.
My friend, God wants you to see the way He sees. Right now, you may see yourself going through a trial in your marriage, work, finances or health. But God sees a blessed marriage, success at work, supernatural provision and a healed body because He tells you that you are already blessed with every spiritual blessing in the heavenly places in Christ.
You see, God sees you in Christ. So when you see yourself in Christ, who is outside time, you step into the timeless zone. In that timeless zone in Christ, whatever needs and trials of yours are already removed, repaired, restored or resurrected! In that timeless zone in Christ, you are already blessed with every spiritual blessing in the heavenly places!
Joyce Meyer (September-27-2021) Daily Devotion: Be Confident in Christ.
You were created by a great God to do great things. But without confidence you will never fulfill your destiny. It is important, however, to remember you are to be confident not in yourself but in Christ who dwells in you.
Satan tries to steal your confidence, but you must resist him at all times. If he has tormented you with fears about your worth and abilities, boldly remind him God is with you and you are equal to anything.
It is encouraging to know God is able even when you are not. He has His eye on you and is waiting for you to show confidence in Him. Faith opens the door for God’s greatness to be seen through your life, so trust Him and enjoy the peace and power of a confident life.
Prayer Starter: Father, please strengthen my faith and help me to believe I can do anything You put in my heart to do. Allow me to live with confidence, knowing You are with me every moment. In Jesus’ Name, Amen.