DAY 1 - JUNE 8
TITLE: “WE TRY TO PERSUADE OTHERS”
WEEKLY SCRIPTURE
DAILY SCRIPTURE
KEY VERSE: “Since, then, we know what it is to fear the Lord, we try to persuade men. What we are is plain to God, and I hope it is also plain to your conscience.”
II Corinthians 5:11
Paul was motivated to try to persuade others of the gospel
of Jesus Christ. His reverence for God and his awareness that each must appear
before the judgment seat of Christ, resulted in a zeal for lost souls. He cared too much about the souls of others to
be silent. Paul was committed to others
coming to know Christ in a personal way. He wrote to the church at
Jesus exemplified this urgency of sharing the gospel with others in his ministry. He told his followers, “Do you not say, ‘Four months more and then the harvest’? I tell you, open your eyes and look at the fields! They are ripe for harvest.” John 4:35. Now is the time to persuade others of Christ. Procrastination is far too costly.
Paul sought to persuade others to follow Christ by the words He spoke and
the life He lived. He sought to live a
life before others that plainly revealed the life-changing power of the gospel.
It has been said that when Benjamin
Franklin wished to interest the people of
We are to persuade others by letting our lives shine so that others will see the light of Christ in us. Jesus instructed us, “In the same way, let your light shine before men, that they may see your good deeds and praise your Father in heaven.” Matthew 5:16. The life you live through the power of Christ can be a powerful tool today to persuade others of the power of the gospel.
Your testimony or witness, both through words and actions, may be the very thing God uses today to persuade someone to follow Jesus. Peter gave us these instructions that can help us prepare to persuade others today. He wrote, “But in your hearts set apart Christ as Lord. Always be prepared to give an answer to everyone who asks you to give the reason for the hope that you have. But do this with gentleness and respect.” I Peter 3:15.
DAY 2 – JUNE 9
TITLE: “CHRIST’S LOVE COMPELS US”
WEEKLY SCRIPTURE
DAILY SCRIPTURE
KEY VERSE: “For Christ love compels us, because we are convinced that one died for all, and therefore all died.” II Corinthians 5:14
I remember speaking a while back with a young couple in the early stages of falling in love. They both had been captured by love. You could see it in their eyes and hear it in their voices as they talked.
Paul had been captured by the magnetic love of Christ. The love of Christ had radically changed him from a persecutor of Christ to a preacher of the gospel. He knew that Christ’s love had reached out to him, a sinner. He wrote to the church of Rome, “But God demonstrates his own love for us in this: While we were still sinners, Christ died for us.” Romans 5:8.
Love was the reason he tried to persuade others of the Gospel of Jesus Christ. The life he lived and the passions he had were all because he had been gripped by the nail-scarred hands of Christ. Love had such a hold on him that it held him steady when he faced opposition. The love that compelled Paul is the same love that compels us today to live for Christ. Jesus loves you.
Jesus loves me! This I know, For the Bible tells me so;
Little ones to Him belong, They are weak but He is strong.
Yes, Jesus loves me! Yes, Jesus loves
me!
Yes, Jesus loves me! The Bible tells me
so.
Jesus loves me! He who died, Heaven's gate to open wide;
He will wash away my sin, Let His little child come in.
Yes, Jesus loves me! Yes, Jesus loves me!
Yes, Jesus loves me! The Bible tells me so.
Jesus loves me! Loves me still, When I'm very weak and ill;
From His shining throne on high, Comes to watch me where I lie.
Yes, Jesus loves me! Yes, Jesus loves me!
Yes, Jesus loves me! The Bible tells me so.
Jesus loves me! He will stay, Close beside me all the way;
He's prepared a home for me, And some day His face I'll see.
Yes, Jesus loves me! Yes, Jesus loves me!
Yes, Jesus loves me! The Bible tells me so.
DAY 3 – JUNE 10
TITLE: “A NEW PERSPECTIVE”
WEEKLY SCRIPTURE
DAILY SCRIPTURE
KEY VERSE: “So from now on we regard no one from a worldly point of view. Though we once regarded Christ in this way, we do so no longer.” II Corinthians 5:16
Paul looks at people differently now because he looks at
Jesus differently. In his pre-conversion
days, he judged Jesus by external considerations in the light of the prejudices
of his upbringing. From his perspective,
he concluded that it was impossible that one born in such obscurity, living is
such restricted circumstances, and dying such a humiliating death, could be the
Christ that the Jews were expecting.
Paul’s perspective changed on the road to
At one time, he had estimated others, including Christ, solely in the light of appearances and superficial considerations. To regard one from a worldly point of view is to look at worldly distinctions, such as race, social status, wealth, and title, by which men esteem one another.
The Bible tells the story of the prophet Samuel, who was choosing a new King. He saw Eliab, the son of Jesse, and thought, “surely this must be the new king.” “But the Lord said to Samuel, “Do not consider his appearance or his height, for I have rejected him, The Lord does not look at the things man looks at. Man looks at the outward appearance, but the Lord looks at the heart.” I Samuel 16:7.
Scripture make it clear that Jesus saw people differently. He saw in the fisherman, Peter as the rock on which to build His church. In Zacchaeus, the tax collector, he saw someone whose life could be transformed. Matthew 9:36 records, “When he saw the crowds, he had compassion on them, because they were harassed and helpless, like sheep without a shepherd.”
For those of us who wear glasses or contact lenses, we know how they can change our view of things. If you don’t wear glasses and you put on a pair of strong glasses, you notice it can change your view considerably. A pair of sunglasses puts what you are looking at in a different light.
Every person is a soul for which Christ died. When we see people as Christ sees them, our whole perspective is changed. Looking at others through the eyes of Christ changes the way we interact and minister to others. We no longer look at people from a worldly view. How has Jesus changed your view of others?
DAY 4 – JUNE 11
TITLE: “HE IS A NEW CREATION”
WEEKLY SCRIPTURE
DAILY SCRIPTURE
KEY VERSE: “Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; the old has gone, the new has come!” II Corinthians 5:17
As an inventor, Andrew Wilson holds the patent on 14
different products. Now, he's licensed
something else that is uniquely his. In
September 2004, a county judge granted
The name is still a novelty, and They's friends are having fun with it, phoning him to ask, "Is They there?" They admits that the name change could drive grammarians crazy. But other than the violence his new name does to the English language, They sees only positive effects from turning a ubiquitous pronoun into his moniker. "There are thousands of Andrew Wilsons," They said. They won't likely have a problem with mistaken identity. He also sees the change as an opportunity to take credit for countless actions, both good and bad, that people refer to every day. “‘They do this,' or 'They're to blame for that.' ‘Who is this 'they' everyone talks about?’ 'They' accomplish such great things. Somebody had to take responsibility,” They said.
Being a Christian is more than a name change. Anyone can change a name, but only Christ can truly transform a person. Paul is speaking about a whole new life in a new context. Through Christ, a whole new situation has been created. To be in Christ is to have an intimate personal relationship to Christ that is transforming. The new creation is not our old selves made better by being religious or doing good things and behaving acceptably. It is not beating out the dings of sin with religious activities. Paul makes this clear when he wrote to the Galatians, “Neither circumcision nor uncircumcision means anything; what counts is a new creation.” Galatians 6:15.
Paul is talking about a newness that is everlastingly new. The newness of Christ never gets old. It comes from being in Christ and, in fact, sharing of his life. Christ gives a whole new identity from within. Don’t let your attitudes or actions today hide who you really are in Christ. In Christ, you are a new creation. Be who you are in Christ.
DAY 5 – JUNE 12
TITLE: “CHRIST’S AMBASSADORS”
WEEKLY SCRIPTURE
DAILY SCRIPTURE
KEY VERSE: “We are
therefore Christ’s ambassadors, as though God were making his appeal through
us. We implore you on Christ’s behalf: Be reconciled to God.”
II Corinthians 5:20
Christians are people with a mission. God, Himself has given us a message to proclaim. It is a message of hope and healing for a hurting world. It is a message of reconciliation.
In the Old Testament, there is an interesting story that took place when Absalom, the son of King David was killed. In those days, they did not have phones or e-mail, so they used runners. Joab, the commander of the army, sent a messenger to run and tell King David what had happened, that his son had been killed. However, Ahimaaz asked if he could run to the king, also. After much persistence, Joab let him run. He arrived first, but he did not know the entire message that was to be told to the king, so the king had to wait for the other runner to hear what happened. We have a message to proclaim. God has not just called us to run church programs or live religious lives, but to proclaim His message. We must know the message and tell it clearly.
In a hospital, there are doctors, nurses, technicians, receptionists, food handlers, administrators, counselors, secretaries, all working together to bring healing. However, they are not the only people in the hospital, for there are a lot of sick people, as well. As followers of Christ, we are surrounded by people that need the healing message of reconciliation. We have a word of healing to proclaim.
Paul calls himself an ambassador. The word refers to one with a direct commission from the Emperor, and Paul regarded himself as commissioned by Jesus Christ for the work of the Church. As Christians, we, too, are ambassadors of the Lord. An ambassador does not speak with his own power, but with the power of the country he represents. The honor of a country is in its ambassador’s hands. What he communicates is not his own opinions or demands, but simply what he has been told or commanded to say.
God wants to speak to others today, and he has chosen you and I to be His mouthpiece. He is making his appeal through us, for we are His ambassadors. Theologian, William Barclay said, “More people have been brought into the church by the kindness of real Christian love then by all the theological arguments in the world, and more people have been driven from the church by the hardness and ugliness of so-called Christianity than by all the doubts in the world.” What kind of ambassador will you be for the Lord today?