Today's Good News

April 2011

04/14 Ephesians 2:17-18
He has brought this Good News of peace to you Gentiles who were far away from him, and to us Jews who were near.  Now all of us, both Jews and Gentiles, may come to the Father through the same Holy Spirit because of what Christ has done for us.

JESUS
Jesus is God’s everything.  He has brought us exactly what we need wherever we are.  Do not fear for the Lord comes looking for the lost.  When you ask Him to save you He will.  Jesus is the only way to the Father and He is faithful to save us from our sin if we will ask.

 

04/15 Ephesians 2:19-20
So now you Gentiles are no longer strangers and foreigners. You are citizens along with all of God’s holy people. You are members of God’s family.  We are his house, built on the foundation of the apostles and the prophets. And the cornerstone is Christ Jesus himself.

JESUS
Everything we do affects the way the world sees us.  When we act like Jesus it is for His honor and glory.  When we act like the world it degrades the name of Jesus.  We are responsible for what we do.  We are responsible in a way that outsiders are not-the world will always act like the world-they are dead in their trespasses and sin.  We are God’s children and members of His household and as such are called to act like His children.

 

04/16 Ephesians 2:21-22
We who believe are carefully joined together, becoming a holy temple for the Lord.  Through him you Gentiles are also joined together as part of this dwelling where God lives by his Spirit.

TEMPLE
We belong to Jesus and indeed we are physically His dwelling place here on earth.  We are charged with the responsibility of being His temple.  Amazing that the Lord would use us.  Where we are yet new in Christ and His righteousness indwells us.  We have to go along with this and therefore it is required that for this to happen we must surrender ourselves to His control.  Praise the Lord from whom all blessings flow.

 

04/17 Ephesians 3:1-2
I, Paul, am a prisoner of Christ Jesus because of my preaching to you Gentiles.  As you already know, God has given me this special ministry of announcing his favor to you Gentiles.

JESUS
Jesus is in control.  When we surrender our life to Christ we are no longer at the mercy of the world.  Jesus is Lord and Savior and we live in Him.  He is Lord and He is in charge.  Forget the circumstances of your life: Jesus has you in His hand.  Do not fear what mankind can do to you, you serve the Lord.

 

04/18 Ephesians 3:3
As I briefly mentioned earlier in this letter, God himself revealed his secret plan to me.

PLAN
God’s plan includes you.  It was developed with you and your exact needs in mind.  The Lord hasn’t forgotten you.  His plan was put into place before the foundation of existence was formed.  God created you in His image and you are valuable.  Rejoice!

 

04/19 Ephesians 3:4-6
As you read what I have written, you will understand what I know about this plan regarding Christ.  God did not reveal it to previous generations, but now he has revealed it by the Holy Spirit to his holy apostles and prophets.  And this is the secret plan: The Gentiles have an equal share with the Jews in all the riches inherited by God’s children. Both groups have believed the Good News, and both are part of the same body and enjoy together the promise of blessings through Christ Jesus.

EVERYONE
All have sinned and fall short of the glory of God.  But God in His infinite wisdom provided a way for anyone and everyone to come to Him.  If we don’t have all of God we need it is simply because we do not want to.

 

04/20 Ephesians 3:7
By God’s special favor and mighty power, I have been given the wonderful privilege of serving him by spreading this Good News.

GOOD NEWS
God loves you and provided a way for you to become a part of His family.  It will change us right now.  We will no longer be slaves to sin but instead we will become a member of God’s household.  Eternity becomes a part of our inheritance.  Life like God’s becomes a part of our daily existence.

 

04/21 Ephesians 3:8
Just think! Though I did nothing to deserve it, and though I am the least deserving Christian there is, I was chosen for this special joy of telling the Gentiles about the endless treasures available to them in Christ.

JOY
It brings great joy to talk about Jesus.  When we share what Christ is doing in our life it encourages and strengthens our daily walk.  Stay close to Jesus.  Talk about Christ and tell others about Him.  Make Jesus the center of your life.

 

04/22 Ephesians 3:9
I was chosen to explain to everyone this plan that God, the Creator of all things, had kept secret from the beginning.

GOD
The world thinks that God’s plan is foolish for it is out of touch with reality.  The truth is that God’s plan has always been and until Christ returns will always be.  He is in touch with His creation and is seeking creations best good.  We have the privilege of sharing what God has done in Christ.  That is a powerful message that brings life to its recipients.

 

04/23 Ephesians 3:10-11
God’s purpose was to show his wisdom in all its rich variety to all the rulers and authorities in the heavenly realms. They will see this when Jews and Gentiles are joined together in his church.  This was his plan from all eternity, and it has now been carried out through Christ Jesus our Lord.

WISDOM
The Lord offers His wisdom to you.  As you grow in Christ you will grow in wisdom.  No longer in bondage to the world you will be able to make plans and live a life that is undergirded by His abundance.

 

04/24 Ephesians 3:12
Because of Christ and our faith in him, we can now come fearlessly into God’s presence, assured of his glad welcome.

WELCOME
Christ died for us.  The righteous died for the unrighteous.  We want to know Him and we need Him to grow.  Christ is our mediator between mankind and God the Father.  He is our righteousness.  Jesus is the only one we can trust in who can change us and outfit us for eternity.  In Christ we are totally reconciled with the Father.  I don’t feel fearless as I live my life in Christ but in fact we are for we come into the presence of the Lord God Almighty because of what Jesus has done for us.

 

04/25 Ephesians 3:13
So please don’t despair because of what they are doing to me here. It is for you that I am suffering, so you should feel honored and encouraged.

SUFFERING
We hate suffering.  We seek to avoid suffering whatever the cost.  The world will seek to make Jesus followers suffer.  The god of this world hates our Lord God and everything He does.  Be of good cheer for Jesus is risen and He is Lord.  Christ has already made a way for us and we can live and trust Him.

 

04/26 Ephesians 3:14-15
When I think of the wisdom and scope of God’s plan, I fall to my knees and pray to the Father, the Creator of everything in heaven and on earth.

PLAN
God has a plan for each one of us.  If we will bend the knee to Christ we will discover God’s plan for our life.  I can testify from my own experience that if you will surrender you will to Jesus and let Him have control of you the Lord will reveal His plan for your life.

 

04/27 Ephesians 3:16
I pray that from his glorious, unlimited resources he will give you mighty inner strength through his Holy Spirit.

RESOURCES
God has the resources to make His plan in your life victorious.  We should seek His guidance, His glorious presence to accomplish His plan in our life.  Rich or poor, free or incarcerated, wise or foolish the Lord has a unique, one of a kind plan for your life.

 

04/28 Ephesians 3:17
And I pray that Christ will be more and more at home in your hearts as you trust in him. May your roots go down deep into the soil of God’s marvelous love.

KNOW HIM
We want to know Jesus.  As we live our life under His direction we will grow and know Him.  Surrender yourself.  Spend time in prayer with Jesus and go forth each day seeking to glorify Him and you will know Him better each day.  Do not take counsel of your fears.  Surrender your life to Him.  Accept His love and live with confidence in His power.

 

04/29 Ephesians 3:18-19
And may you have the power to understand, as all God’s people should, how wide, how long, how high, and how deep his love really is.  May you experience the love of Christ, though it is so great you will never fully understand it. Then you will be filled with the fullness of life and power that comes from God.

POWER
Believe in Jesus.  He can give you exactly what you are looking for in life.  Each of us wants to be valuable and to live a worthy and worthwhile life.  Let Jesus have control of you.  Believe in Jesus and He will change you into Christ likeness.

 

04/30 Ephesians 3:20-21
Now glory be to God! By his mighty power at work within us, he is able to accomplish infinitely more than we would ever dare to ask or hope.  May he be given glory in the church and in Christ Jesus forever and ever through endless ages. Amen.

VICTORY
When we begin in Christ we begin with victory.  Our life becomes a victorious life filled with the presence of the Lord Jesus.  We only see and know a little bit about our life, time and the future.  Jesus knows all things and He will guide us day by day so that we will experience His victory in all that we do.

http://www.claycorvin.com

 

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Clay Corvin

Clay Corvin is currently a Bible Teacher and occasional preacher at Bethel Community Baptist Church in New Orleans. He is the retired VP Business and Professor of Admin at New Orleans Baptist Theological Seminary after completing 38 years as their Business Administrator. He was the pastor at the Brantley Baptist Center for twenty-five years. He is married to Carol Corvin and the father of three children and has three grandchildren. He ministers today as Co-pastor of the Bethel Community Baptist Church and seeks to share the Gospel with everyone. Jesus is Lord!