GPS for the week of January 12, 2020
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“Revival: A Longing For Holiness”
The Wesley family lived in a time of deep division and polarization in the England of the 1700’s. (Sound familiar?) John and Charles as brothers realized that they could complain, criticize, and withdraw from all that was going around them, OR…they could do something about it. They chose to do something. With a small group of college students, the brothers began to meet regularly throughout the week to discuss what was going on, to pray together, and to go to worship together. They longed for a nation that lived with holiness in the life of its population, so they began by longing for holiness themselves. They didn’t change the world. They changed themselves first.
Prayer: O Lord, we long to live a holy life worthy of our calling as Christ’s own. Guide us this day as we seek to revive our lives, that we may more fully live to your glory. Amen.
Monday 1.13 “Holy” 1 Peter 1: 13-16
Think about this: We believe that these words were written by the apostle Peter, the disciple who knew Jesus probably better than anyone. Even considering that some meanings are lost when languages are translated, these are powerful words that are pretty much coming from a direct, first-hand relationship with Jesus. The word “holy” means “set apart”. This passage speaks about disciplining ourselves. What are the spiritual disciplines that you use in your life that set you apart?
Tuesday 1.14 “The Ancient Holy” Leviticus 19:1-2
The 1 Peter passage yesterday is anchored around the ancient Jewish words today found in Leviticus. “Be holy”. This concept, this commandment, is ancient to us and it was ancient when Peter quoted it. If we know that “holy” means “set apart”, and that God was “holy”, how is it that God is set apart in our world? How do you see God’s ancient holiness in the world in which we live?
Wednesday 1.15 “Whatever You Do”
1 Corinthians 10:31-11:1
Look closely at verse 31: “Whatever you do, do it all for the glory of God.” Those words changed John Wesley’s life. He started looking at his life through God’s eyes and began to live even more deeply for God each and every moment of his days. What is it in your life that you are not proud of, things you are doing regularly that are definitely not for the glory of God? How could you begin to give those things up, to walk away from them and walk more closely with God?
Thursday 1.16 “Glory” Psalm 115: 1-8
Verse 1: “Not to us, O Lord, not to us but to your name be the glory, because of your love and faithfulness.” The focus of our faith all too often turns toward us…instead of toward God. We love because God first loved us. We can be holy because God was first holy. We can be set apart because God was first set apart. How do you suspect John and Charles Wesley tried to do this? Read through the psalm again. What do you read that magnifies God’s glory…first, instead of our glory first?
Friday 1.17 “It’s Not About You” 1 Corinthians 13: 1-7
Giving all of your body to God means nothing if you are not also giving your heart. If you are not all-in giving of everything that you have, give, and do, then you are missing the point. It’s not about you. It’s about God, and it’s about God’s love flowing through you to those around you. The Wesley brothers did not just believe this, they lived it every single day. There is a question: “If you were arrested for being Christian, would there be enough evidence to convict you?” Where are you in all of this?
Saturday 1.18 “The Fellowship of Believers”
Acts 2: 42-47
The earliest followers of Christ lived in a very different way than we do in our modern churches and communities. But there is still much that we can learn and be challenged by. How is it that you are being asked to share with others? How do you respond?