Two Billy Graham Devotionals

I read this first one prior to going to bed last night and thought I'd share. It is from the daily devotional book Hope for Each Day: Words of Wisdom and Faith by Billy Graham


Bring Glory to God: December 29


Present... your members as instruments of righteousness to God. Romans 6:13


When you serve sin, your body is dedicated to the service of sin. Your appetites, whetted by Satan, rage unthrottled. Your God-given creative impulses are sacrificed to Satan on the altar of lust. A sinner, in a sense, is a dedicated person, yielded to his appetites and selfish desires. 


But when Christ comes into the human heart we are to yield our bodies to Him. Our human frame is often a rebellious and unruly servant. Only through rigid discipline and the help of the Holy Spirit are we able to master it into complete subjection to Christ. We must guard against appetites that blight the conscience, wither the soul, and weaken our witness for Christ. 


Perhaps many things are lawful, but are they expedient? Are they a harmful example to others?


As long as we are in this world, our old nature will try to defeat us and turn us away from Christ. But learn to recognize the warning signs, and commit your mind and body to Christ "as instruments of righteousness."


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This next devotional I just read when trying to find an online version of the previous devo. This is a good reminder that Jesus is the only way, truth and life in this lost world. The Bible, His Word, is the greatest book ever written.


BGEA: Daily Devotional December 30: Why We Have the Bible

God caused the Bible to be written for the express purpose of revealing to us God’s plan for His redemption. God caused the Book to be written that He might make His everlasting laws clear to His children, and that they might have His great wisdom to guide them, and His great love to comfort them as they make their way through life. For without the Bible this world would indeed be a dark and frightening place, without signpost or beacon. The Bible easily qualifies as the only book in which God’s revelation is contained.

There are many bibles of different religions; there is the Mohammedan Koran, the Buddhist Canon of Sacred Scripture, the Zoroastrian Zend-Avesta, and the Brahman Veda . . . They all begin with some flashes of true light, and end in utter darkness. Even the most casual observer soon discovers that the Bible is radically different. It is the only Book that offers redemption to us and points the way out of our dilemma.

PRAYER FOR THE DAY

Lord Jesus, as I read Your Word, Your truth shines through and illuminates a dark world.