Tuesday April 18, 2023

There is no righteous, not even one ; there is not one who is intelligent, there is not one who seeks God. Romans 3.10,11

I neither killed nor robbed

“I neither stole nor killed ; I have never cheated on my wife, I raise my children according to principles of honesty and morality. Why wouldn't the Good Lord accept me, then ? Besides, I have nothing to do with religion, my conscience is enough." It is in good faith that such comments are often made.

This reminds us of the anecdote of the French motorist who was driving very carefully on the right on a road in Great Britain. The inevitable happened. He hit a vehicle which was also driving very quietly on his left according to the English code. Despite his good conscience and his good faith, English justice and assurances condemned this "innocent" at his expense.

The Bible declares that we will all stand before God one day where we will be judged, not by our law, principles, or opinions, but by divine justice. The ordinances and decrees of God are recorded in his Word, the Bible. Through it, we learn that there is only one way, only one door by which we can have the assurance of being accepted by God.

Jesus Christ is that way, that door, and no one can be declared innocent and righteous outside of him. It is because he shed his blood that we are cleansed from all sin. (1 John 1.7)

Albert Nouguier

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Proposed reading : Letter to the Romans, chapter 8, verses 1 to 4.

8.1 There is therefore now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus.

8.2 For the law of the Spirit of life in Christ Jesus has set you free from the law of sin and death.

8.3 For - something impossible with the law, because the flesh rendered it powerless - God, seeing his own Son in a condition like the flesh of sin, in connection with sin, condemned sin in the flesh,

8.4 that the righteousness required by the law may be accomplished in us who walk, not according to the flesh, but according to the Spirit.

Source (Live Today)

Monday 17 April 2023

What is your life ? You are a vapor that appears for a little while and then disappears. James 4.14

My life under the magnifying glass

For several months, I created online photo albums with the best shots of the family. I saw my life and those of my loved ones go by. Many events are immortalized on paper, except the one that radically changed the course of my life ! It is the day when, at the age of 29, I gave my life to Jesus.

How did this decision change my life ? Like many, I thought I was a good person, without much to reproach myself for. But the Bible showed me that I was sinning, that I was guilty before God and therefore deserved... hell !

The Lord is good to have revealed these things to me. I was thus able to seek the means of escaping perdition. Deeply touched by Jesus and what he has done for me, I came to him and repented of my sins and bad attitudes. Jesus forgave me and saved me. Since then, my priorities have changed. I walk in obedience on the narrow and difficult path of the Christian life, with heaven as my destiny.

I am happy to have believed the words of Jesus, including this promise which is also addressed to you: I tell you, whoever hears my word, and who believes on him who sent me, has eternal life and does not come into judgment, but has passed from death to life (John 5:24).

Francoise Lanthier

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Proposed reading : Book of Ecclesiastes, chapter 12, Verses 1-9.

12.1 Young man, rejoice in your youth, rejoice in your heart in the days of your youth, walk in the ways of your heart and according to the looks of your eyes ; but know that for all this God will call you to judgment.

12.2 Banish sorrow from your heart, and remove evil from your heart ; for youth and dawn are vanity.

12.3 But remember your maker in the days of your youth, before the evil days come and the years draw near when you will say, I take no pleasure in it ;

12.4 before the sun and the light, the moon and the stars are darkened, and the clouds return after the rain,

12.5 time when the guardians of the house tremble, when the strong men bow down, when those who mold stop because they are diminished, when those who look out of the windows are darkened,

12.6 where the two leaves of the door close on the street when the noise of the millstone subsides, where one rises at the song of the bird, where all the daughters of song grow weak,

12.7 where the lofty is dreaded, where there are terrors along the way, where the almond tree blossoms, where the grasshopper grows heavy, and where the caper has no more effect, for man goes to his eternal home, and mourners roam the streets ;

12.8 before the silver cord comes loose, the golden vessel breaks, the pail breaks on the spring, and the wheel breaks on the cistern ;

12.9 before the dust returns to the earth, as it was there, and the spirit returns to God who gave it.

Source (Live Today)

Sunday 9 April 2023

Jesus said to her : Mary ! She turned around and said to him in Hebrew : Rabbouni ! That is to say, Master ! John 20.16

Turn round

In the darkness before dawn, Mary of Magdala goes to the sepulcher where Jesus was hastily laid before the Sabbath. The great stone of the sepulcher is rolled away. It took several men to do this, and Mary immediately concluded that Jesus' body had been stolen. She runs to warn the disciples. The idea of the resurrection does not cross his mind. Distraught and hopeless, she returns to the open tomb to weep. Confined in her first impression, she does not react to the encounter with angels. In her eyes clouded with tears, her lucidity is dulled by her pain.

In her fixed idea of a kidnapping, she questions a man on the spot without looking him in the face. She confuses the presence of the risen Christ with a gardener. Morning darkness also seemed to be on her mind... But at the voice of the Lord who calls her by name, Mary turns around, quivers with joy and exclaims before the truth of the living Christ : “Master ! »

Beware of appearances, reflections of unfinished thoughts... Question your first impressions that cloud understanding. They deceive the soul and prevent us from seeing reality. As you read the Bible, turn back to the truth of God, to the call of the risen Christ who also knows you by name !

Dominique Moreau

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Proposed reading : Gospel according to John, chapter 20, verses 1 to 18.

Source (Live Today)

Friday 24 March 2023

So the man and his wife hid themselves from the face of the Eternal God. Genesis 3.8

To play hide and seek

From an early age we have the reflex to hide to avoid answering for our actions. A child who has just done something stupid hides behind a door hoping to avoid a reprimand ; an offending employee slips away to escape reprimand.

The fear of being discovered and punished dictates our reaction.

Adam and Eve had just committed the mistake that will change the course of human history (Genesis 3:1-11). They are ashamed, they are afraid and they hide.

Today, when we know we are at fault, we can try to avoid God, refuse to meet him because in our heart of hearts we know we are guilty and we are ashamed. Just like my little girl who hides behind her hands, thinking that we cannot see her, we believe that we are escaping the gaze of God and thus dodging the sanction.

Only, God sees our hearts and his light illuminates our secrets (Psalm 90.8). Nothing is hidden from him. But thanks to Jesus we don't have to be afraid because he has already suffered the judgment we deserve. Instead of chasing us to punish us, God Himself becomes our refuge. We don't need to run away from it anymore !

Alison Packer

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Proposed reading : Letter to the Hebrews, chapter 10, verses 19 to 22.

Source (Live Today)

Tuesday, 21 March 2023

I know all the birds of the mountains and everything that moves in the fields belongs to me. Psalm 50.11

The perfect concert of the nightingale of the walls

Several years ago, our barn housed a nest of redstarts. We know the feverish and tireless activity of the parents feeding their chicks before they take off as adults. The regularity, the precision of the flights and the chirping of all these hungry little ones charmed me every morning a few steps from our kitchen.

In this second period of confinement (spring 2021), I find a redstart again every morning – probably one of the parents or one of the young of the old brood – with its generous, free and joyful concert for my delighted ears. My presence doesn't seem to bother him. It is also called "nightingale of the walls", a happy and justified title for this morning companion !

If my songs cannot compete with this bird, my touched heart fills with happiness against it. Like the psalmist, my soul offers thanksgiving as a sacrifice and I want to glorify my creator before these renewed little marvels. Life is not gloomy then, despite the incessant flow of alarmist information about this unforeseen period.

Bernard Fourmont

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Proposed reading : Book of Genesis, chapter 2, verses 1 to 3.

2.1 Thus were finished the heaven and the earth, and all their host.

2.2 On the seventh day God had finished all the work he had done; on the seventh day he rested from all the work he had done.

2.3 God blessed the seventh day and made it a holy day, for on that day God rested from all the work he had done in creating.

Source (Live Today)