Christianity Oasis Forum

[cimi]

NOVEMBER 13
Thursday


WHOM WILL
YOU TRUST?

READ:
Philippians 3:1-11
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By grace you have been
saved through faith, and
that not of yourselves;
it is the gift of God.
__Ephesians 2:8
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Ayn Rand, an American philosopher who died in 1982, gathered a sizable following who read her books and attended her lectures. An avid individualist, she had this to say: "Now I see the free face of god and I raise this god over all the earth, this god who men have sought since men came into being, the god who will grant them joy and peace and pride. This god, this one word, I." When asked if she believed in God, she answered,
This god is myself, I." Egotism__faith in oneself__that's what this philosopher believed in.

The apostle Paul bore witness to a trust that is exactly the opposite of that misplaced self-confidence. He declared, "[We] worship God in the Spirit, rejoice in Christ Jesus, and have no confidence in the flesh" (Phil. 3:3). He put his trust solely in Jesus Christ, who is God incarnate, the true God of love and mercy.

We read in the book of Ephesians, "By grace you have been saved through faith, and that not of yourselves; it is the gift of God" (2:8).

Are we embracing the philosophy of egotism, which is really a confidence that will prove eternally self-destructive? Or have we, like Paul, embraced the self-sacrificing grace of Jesus Christ? __Vernon Grounds
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`````````````````By grace now I'm saved__Hallelujah!`````````````
```````````````Praise God, and through faith it's been done;`````````
````````````````````Naught of myself, but believing```````````````
``````````````In the finished work of His Son. __Gladwin```````````
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We are saved not by what we do
but by trusting what Christ has done.

**************Today's Bible Reading __Philippians 3:1-11***********

1 Finally, my brethren,
rejoice in the Lord. For me
to write the same things to
you is not tedious, but for
you it is safe.

2 Beware of dogs, beware
of evil workers, beware of
the mutilation! 3 For we are
the circumcision, who
worship God in the Spirit,
rejoice in Christ Jesus, and
have no confidence in the
flesh, 4 Though I also might
have confidence in the flesh.
If anyone else thinks he may
have confidence in the flesh,
I more so: 5 circumcised the
eighth day, of the stock of
Israel, of the tribe of
Benjamin, a Hebrew of the
Hebrews; concerning the
law, a Pharisee; 6 concerning
zeal, persecuting the
church; concerning the
righteousness which is in
the law, blameless.

7 But what thing were gain
to me, these I have counted
loss for Christ. 8 Yet indeed I
also count all things loss for
the excellence of the
knowledge of Christ Jesus
my Lord, for whom I have
suffered the loss of all
things, and count them as
rubbish, that I may gain
Christ 9 and be found in
Him, not having my own
righteousness, which is from
the law, but that which is
through faith in Christ, the
righteousness which is from
God by faith; 10 that I may
know Him and the power of
His resurrection, and the
fellowship of his sufferings,
being conformed to His
death, 11 if, by any means
I may attain to the
resurrection from the dead.

>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>INSIGHT<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<

The grace of Christ is open to all. Of this John Calvin said: "No man
is excluded from calling upon God, the gate of salvation is set open
unto all men: neither is there any other thing which keepeth us back
from entering, save only our own unbelief." __Dennis Fisher