JOHN SHIRK – Today’s Good News Focus is on Second Timothy 3, verses 14 and 15.
“As for you, continue in what you have learned and have become convinced of, because you know those from whom you learned it, and how from infancy you have known the Holy Scriptures, which are able to make you wise for salvation through faith in Christ Jesus.”
Bible study is an important part of growing in our understanding of who God is. Much like giving of our tithes, it is not meant to be a begrudging duty, but a joyful delight. It can be one of the highlights of our day, to open God’s word and read about His salvation plan through Jesus Christ. This is where we learn of God’s love to the world in need of a Savior. And through Jesus, He provided the solution for the sinful human condition.
Jesus is our Source of Good News, leading us to a place of trusting His grace to save us from our sins in the Year of Vision.
John Shirk
john@wjtl.com
JOHN SHIRK – Today’s Good News Focus is on Titus 2, verses 11 and 12.
“For the grace of God has appeared that offers salvation to all people. It teaches us to say ‘No’ to ungodliness and worldly passions, and to live self-controlled, upright and godly lives in this present age.”
Here we see the power of God’s grace to save us and transform us through Jesus Christ. He gave Himself to redeem us from all wickedness and to purify for Himself a people that are His very own, eager to do what is good.
Jesus is our Source of Good News, leading us to places of freedom and pure devotion in the Year of Vision.
John Shirk
john@wjtl.com
John Shirk-Today’s Good News Focus is on Ephesians 6:17.
“Take the helmet of salvation and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God.”
God’s salvation is reliable to protect us from the threats of our enemies in the spiritual realm. Nothing in all creation can separate us from the love of God that is in Christ Jesus. There is another place in the New Testament that refers to the helmet of salvation. First Thessalonians 5:8 urges us to put on the hope of salvation as a helmet. When we live with the awareness that God protects our soul, we live with a sense of security that our lives are in God’s hands, and that our future is with Him forever.
The sword of the Spirit is the word of God, serving as a reliable offensive weapon against the forces of darkness in the heavenly realms. Darkness retreats in the presence of light. Satan retreats when we break out God’s Word and live by it.
Jesus is our Source of Good News, leading us to places of light, hope, and salvation in the Year of Vision.
John Shirk
john@wjtl.com
JOHN SHIRK – In the Year of Vision, we are examining more of God’s purposes for our lives with our 20/20 Insights this week.
Today’s 20/20 Insight focuses on God’s purpose for our lives to be saved from our sins.
That is why Jesus came to the world. John 3:17 tells us that “God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world, but to save the world through him.”
Jesus is God’s plan of redemption. There is no plan B. Our sin put us in a desperate place. It was like we were rafting downstream and crossed the point of no return. We were on a collision course with a waterfall. The only thing that can save us is a sturdy branch that is extending from the bank. It is within our grasp. In the spiritual realm, Jesus is the Branch of the LORD, and He is strong enough to rescue us, so we can reach for Him today. He is mighty to save.
Romans 10:13 says that “everyone who calls on the name of the Lord will be saved.”
Focusing on the saving grace of the Lord Jesus Christ gives us greater clarity for living out the Christian life.
John Shirk
john@wjtl.com
JOHN SHIRK – In the Year of Vision, today’s 20/20 Insight focuses on the searching. heart of Zacchaeus.
In Luke 19, we find this wealthy tax collector climbing a tree to see Jesus. The Bible says that he wanted to see who Jesus was.
Jesus noticed him and invited himself to Zacchaeus’s house. Zacchaeus welcomed Jesus gladly.
The encounter changed his life. He said to Jesus, “Look, Lord! Here and now I give half of my possessions to the poor, and if I have cheated anybody out of anything, I will pay back four times the amount.”
In seeing Jesus, Zacchaeus saw the folly of his greed, and saw how his life could be different by being more generous. His words to Jesus reflected his commitment to change course. Jesus said to him, “Today, salvation has come to this house.”
Focusing on the generosity of God’s grace gives us greater clarity for living out the Christian life.
John Shirk
john@wjtl.com
JOHN SHIRK – Today’s Wisdom from the Red Letters is found in John 3:16.
Jesus said, “For God so loved the world that he gave his one and Only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life.”
This is one of the most familiar Bible verses in the Bible. Billy Graham has said that this verse is the Gospel in a nutshell.
It is a fitting verse for various occasions. At Christmas, this verse shows how Jesus is God’s precious gift to the world.
On Valentine’s Day, this verse can be used to focus on Jesus as the highest expression of God’s love.
And on Good Friday, this verse can be used to emphasize the sacrifice that Jesus made for us when He went to the cross.
This verse can also be used to invite others to receive the gift of God’s grace through faith in Jesus.
The words of Jesus inspire us to trust in His grace for eternal life in the Year of Redemption.
John Shirk
john@wjtl.com
JOHN SHIRK – Today’s Eye on Integrity is based on John 3:16 and 17.
“For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life. For God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world, but to save the world through him.”
Jesus came to the world on a rescue mission for souls that were lost without God and were helpless to produce a remedy. Jesus came to be the remedy. He is the gift from God that this world needs for forgiveness and eternal life. We can find a certain hope for our souls by trusting in His grace to save us from our sins. That is the message of the birth of Jesus, His death, and resurrection. Acts 2:21 assures us that “everyone who calls on the name of the Lord will be saved.”
Trusting in Jesus for salvation is a virtue to embrace for our lives in the Year of Integrity.
John Shirk
john@wjtl.com
JOHN SHIRK – Today’s Eye on Integrity is based on Romans 10:9.
“If you declare with your mouth, ‘Jesus is Lord’ and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved.”
The Gospel is the good news of what Jesus did for us when He went to the cross and rose from the dead three days later. This is the defining moment in history that gives us hope. No longer will God hold our sins against us if our faith is in Jesus Christ as Lord and Savior.
Our failures are not fatal. Our faith is not futile. Death is not final. The resurrection of Jesus was a game-changer. His grace freely given is a life-changer.
Walking by faith in the resurrected Christ is a virtue to embrace for our lives in the Year of Integrity.
John Shirk
john@wjtl.com
JOHN SHIRK – Today’s Promise of Hope is based on First John 4:15.
“If anyone acknowledges that Jesus is the Son of God, God lives in them and they in God.”
Jesus is the way to a lasting relationship with God, the Father. Faith in Jesus opens the door into that relationship where we have opportunity to walk and talk with God every day. He will lead us with Divine wisdom and save us with His Divine grace. Our life will have meaningful purpose under God’s direction. Our soul will be secure under God’s protection.
With this promise in view, we can rely on the love God has for us.
An eternal relationship with God is a promise of hope for those who follow Jesus in the Year of Trust.
John Shirk
john@wjtl.com
JOHN SHIRK – In the Year of Trust, today’s Focus on God examines Jesus as the answer.
According to Acts 4:12, “Salvation is found in no one else, for there is no other name under heaven given to mankind by which we must be saved.”
One of Christian music’s pioneers Andrae Crouch wrote a song that has endured the test of time, claiming that Jesus is the answer for the world today.
Jesus is the answer to the big picture questions of life, such as “where did we come from? Why are we here? What is our purpose in life? What is our destiny? Jesus is our Creator. He is the One who redeems us from sin and restores us to God. He is the way to eternal life.
Jesus is also the answer to our soul-searching questions such as “What is my greatest need?” “How can I enter the kingdom of God”? and “How can I be saved from my sin?” For these questions, Jesus is the answer.
Knowing Jesus as the answer to our soul-searching questions is a reason to trust in God for today and forever.
John Shirk
john@wjtl.com
JOHN SHIRK – In the Year of Trust, today’s Focus on God examines His love for the world.
According to John 3:16 and 17, “God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life. For God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world, but to save the world through him.”
The world is a big place with a population that rises above 7 billion people today. When Jesus came into the world, He was coming as the remedy for the deepest problem of each one of us. Romans 6:23 tells us that the wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord. Where sin is our greatest problem, Jesus is our ultimate solution because in His grace is the forgiveness and eternal life that He offers us. There may be shortages of other resources in the world today, but there is no shortage of God’s love. His grace is abundant to save whoever calls on the name of the Lord.
God’s love for the world is a reason to trust in God for today and forever.
John Shirk
john@wjtl.com
