JCSM's Weekly Devotions (click here to listen!)

"Forgive and Be Forgiven"

Matthew 18:21, 22  "Then Peter came to Him and said, 'Lord, how often shall my brother sin against me, and I forgive him?  Up to seven times?  Jesus said to him, 'I do not say to you, up to seven times, but up to seventy times seven.'"

Luke 6:37  "Judge not, and you shall not be judged.  Condemn not, and you shall not be condemned.  Forgive, and you will be forgiven."

Colossians 1:13, 14  "He has delivered us from the power of darkness and conveyed us into the kingdom of the Son of His love, in whom we have redemption through His blood, the forgiveness of sins."

Ephesians 4:32  "And be kind to one another, tenderhearted, forgiving one another, even as God in Christ forgave you."

1 John 1:9  "If we confess our sins, He is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness."

Insight: Forgiving others is an important part of being a Christian.  The Bible probably emphasizes it so much because Christ has forgiven our sins.  We should be mindful of God's amazing forgiveness and we should extend the same forgiveness to others.

Prayer: "Dear Lord, bless us and make us like You.  Thank you for loving us so much.  There is no other like You.  Help us to forgive others.  Let us understand the depth of your forgiveness and freely and quickly forgive others.  Thank you for the awesome freedom You give us when we forgive.  Help us to avoid holding grudges.  In Jesus' name, Amen."

On January 4, 1885, Dr. William Grant of Davenport, Iowa, performed the first recorded appendectomy on a 22-year-old woman, Mary Gartside. It traditionally has been taught that the appendix is a useless “vestigial” organ left over from mankind’s evolutionary past. However, closer investigation shows that no part of the human body is without value and purpose. The appendix, and also our tonsils, produce antibodies which fight infection in the early stages of life. In later years these organs may become inflamed and then they can be removed safely. Physicians today are increasingly reluctant to remove any parts of the body. There is a growing appreciation of the importance and interactions of all our body components. As David sang long ago: "I praise you because I am fearfully and wonderfully made; Your works are wonderful, I know full well (Ps. 139:14)."

This excerpt was taken from Donald DeYoung's book called, "365 Fascinating Facts From the World of Discovery."

(This explanation came from "The Skeptic's Annotated Bible: Corrected and Explained", by Dr. Jason Gastrich.  This book is on CD and gives over 4,000 answers to alleged Bible errors, regarding the entire Bible at http://www.skepticsannotatedbible.org.  There is also a 300 question workbook that accompanies the CD-ROM.)

Christians should see and analyze what is going on in the world in light of scripture.

Even mature Christians are still being conformed to Christ.

Some people enjoy attending very large churches because they aren't held accountable or even approached by other Christians.

If you'd like to read more quotes, you'll want a copy of Dr. Gastrich's book called, "10,000 Wise Quotes and Spiritual Sayings"!  It's the largest collection of Bible-based quotations in the world.