Verse of the Day 11/8

 

2 Corinthians 4:5-6  You see, we don't go around preaching about ourselves. We preach that Jesus Christ is Lord, and we ourselves are your servants for Jesus' sake. ⁶ For God, who said, "Let there be light in the darkness," has made this light shine in our hearts so we could know the glory of God that is seen in the face of Jesus Christ.  New Living Translation (NLT)

 

I don't know how many of you may have seen the Billy Graham special last night, "The Cross", but if you get the opportunity find out when it will be shown again, it will be worth it.  He did not fail to give the message "The Cross" and the power of Jesus in the heart that transforms lives.

 

Part of the program was a review of Billy Graham's life and ministry.  There were pictures of him along Martin Luther King Jr., and all of the presidents that served during his years of ministry.  But something that was evident was that it wasn't about himself, it wasn't about those of influence that he came to know, he always preached, spoke, and lived his life as a testimony of the Cross of Christ, of God's saving grace.

 

I read the following quote in today's "Today in the Word" devotional on this passage.   "Only when Paul had experienced the piercing light of the gospel in his own heart could he then take that message to the world.  As one commentator puts it, "We can only preach to others the Christ we have met ourselves."  Billy Graham, like Paul in the New Testament proclaimed the Christ that he had met himself.

 

Billy would be the first to tell others that it wasn't about him, he wasn't saving people, he was just a messenger pointing to the light, praying that the light of the world might shine in the hearts, that God would reveal His glory in the face, in the person of Jesus Christ.  He would be the first to tell you that:

 

 "The Light of the World is Jesus"

The whole world was lost
In the darkness of sin,
The Light of the world is Jesus!
Like sunshine at noonday,
His glory shone in.
The Light of the world is Jesus!

Refrain

Come to the light, 'tis shining for thee;
Sweetly the light has dawned upon me.
Once I was blind, but now I can see:
The Light of the world is Jesus!

In Christ,
Mike

 

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Eph 1:7 In him we have redemption through his blood, the forgiveness of sins, in accordance with the riches of God's grace  NIV

2 Corinthians 4:4-6

The Message (MSG)

^3-4 If our Message is obscure to anyone, it's not because we're holding back in any way. No, it's because these other people are looking or going the wrong way and refuse to give it serious attention. All they have eyes for is the fashionable god of darkness. They think he can give them what they want, and that they won't have to bother believing a Truth they can't see. They're stone-blind to the dayspring brightness of the Message that shines with Christ, who gives us the best picture of God we'll ever get.

^5-6 Remember, our Message is not about ourselves; we're proclaiming Jesus Christ, the Master. All we are is messengers, errand runners from Jesus for you. It started when God said, "Light up the darkness!" and our lives filled up with light as we saw and understood God in the face of Christ, all bright and beautiful.