Today’s Podcast
Today’s Scriptures
Today’s Bible reading plans include:
Ready – Galatians 6
Set – Deuteronomy 28; Galatians 6
Go! – Deuteronomy 28-29; Galatians 6
Galatians 6
1My spiritual brothers and sisters, if one of our faithful has fallen into a trap and is snared by sin, don’t stand idle and watch his demise. Gently restore him, being careful not to step into your own snare. 2 Shoulder each other’s burdens, and then you will live as the law of the Anointed teaches us. 3 Don’t take this opportunity to think you are better than those who slip because you aren’t; then you become the fool and deceive even yourself. 4 Examine your own works so that if you are proud, it will be because of your own accomplishments and not someone else’s. 5 Each person has his or her own burden to bear and story to write.6 Remember to share what you have with your mentor in the Word.
7 Make no mistake: God can’t be mocked. What you give is what you get. What you sow, you harvest. 8 Those who sow seeds into their flesh will only harvest destruction from their sinful nature. But those who sow seeds into the Spirit shall harvest everlasting life from the Spirit. 9 May we never tire of doing what is good and right before our Lord because in His season we shall bring in a great harvest if we can just persist. 10 So seize any opportunity the Lord gives you to do good things and be a blessing to everyone, especially those within our faithful family.
11 Look at how giant these letters are now that I am writing with my own hand!
12 The troublemakers who are putting pressure on you to be circumcised are trying to impress the flesh. They want to avoid the persecution that comes from preaching the cross of the Anointed One, the Liberating King. 13 But even those who receive circumcision can’t keep the law—although they think they can—and they hope to influence which way you go with your own skin so they can have bragging rights over your flesh.
14 May I never put anything above the cross of our Lord Jesus the Anointed. Through Him, the world has been crucified to me and I to this world. 15 Let me be clear: circumcision won’t save you—uncircumcision won’t either for that matter—for both amount to nothing. God’s new creation is what counts, and it counts for everything. 16 May peace and mercy come to all of you who live by this rule and to the Israel of God.
17 In the future, don’t let anyone cause trouble for me because I bear in my body the marks that wounded Jesus.
18 May the grace of our Lord Jesus, the Anointed One, infuse your spirit with His, brothers and sisters. Amen.
Today’s Devotional
From today’s background scripture God might say:
I wish young people today learned more about agriculture in school or at home. It seems many of them don’t understand one of the very basic natural laws I set in place when I created the universe. It’s a simple rule. It says, “Whatever you sow, you reap.” If you sow corn in a field, you don’t get wheat, you get corn. If you sow beans, you don’t get watermelons, you bet beans. Simple.
The same rule applies to all of nature. If you sow deceit, you reap deceit. If you sow hatred, you reap hatred. If you sow love, you reap love. If you sow kindness, you reap kindness. Whatever you sow, you reap. I wish I could make people understand that fundamental law early in life. It would reduce so much pain and suffering in this generation.
You see, that first act of adultery has consequences you cannot stop. The first toke has consequences you cannot stop. The first drink or the first pill has consequences you cannot stop. Whatever you sow, you reap. Whether it’s the physical, emotional and psychological, or the spiritual effects of your actions, there are always consequences as a natural offshoot because whatever you sow, you reap. It’s a law you cannot change.
Every once in a while, I might use My power to bail you out of the consequences of your action, but most of the time, I don’t. I forgive you and cover you with My blood so your sins are never held against you again in My sight. But the physical, emotional, and relationship scars created remain. Often I still let you reap what you sow. I don’t take away the consequences of your actions. So broken relationships remain broken. Diseases don’t go away. Scars remind you never to walk that path again.
I’m not sure why people today think they can do things without reaping the consequences that come with those actions. I’ve said it enough in My word. The phrase is well known in the general populace. Common sense should tell you actions create consequences from the first time you stick your finger in a flame. But time and again I see people thinking they will get away with their bad behavior. They think nothing will happen. They think what they do will have no affect on their life or the lives of others. It’s as if someone sucked out their brain just before they decide to participate in behavior they know is wrong.
Perhaps one day people will listen better. Perhaps they will understand the natural laws of the universe I put in place. Perhaps they’ll stop before “sowing wild oats” because those wild oats grow where they are planted and reap consequences that live on. Perhaps parents will begin to share their stories with their children and teach them to live responsibly early in life because they will reap what they sow even at those early ages. That law hasn’t changed since creation. Don’t expect Me to change it any time soon.
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