11/01 Ephesians 1:11
Furthermore, because of Christ, we have received an inheritance from God, for he chose us from the beginning, and all things happen just as he decided long ago.
CHOSEN
Jesus said whosever will may come. When claim that offer and accept Jesus as Lord and Savior we become the CHOSEN of God. Jesus died for each one of us as if there were no other of us. His life gives us new life eternally.
11/02 Ephesians 1:12
God’s purpose was that we who were the first to trust in Christ should praise our glorious God.
PURPOSE
What a glorious Lord we serve. We can but proclaim His glory and magnificence. He is gracious and merciful. He loves beyond compare. His concern for His creation is beyond description therefore with all creation we each shout glory to God in the highest. Jesus is Lord.
11/03 Ephesians 1:13
And now you also have heard the truth, the Good News that God saves you. And when you believed in Christ, he identified you as his own by giving you the Holy Spirit, whom he promised long ago.
IDENTIFICATION
We come into the family of God and we are known. Jesus knows who we are, where we are and what we need to serve Him. Where ever we are we can participate in His victory and claim His victory for our life. His lordship is permanently stamped on us with the indelible Holy Spirit. His claim upon us is eternal.
11/04 Ephesians 1:14
The Spirit is God’s guarantee that he will give us everything he promised and that he has purchased us to be his own people. This is just one more reason for us to praise our glorious God.
GUARANTEE
The Spirit of God evidences to us in our spirit of God’s ownership of us. Our faithfulness to be used by Him and grown by Him is always encouraged by the Holy Spirit. Discipline for daily living is our responsibility. Eternal life is God’s gift to us.
11/05 Psalm 124:1-5
If the LORD had not been on our side – let Israel now say –if the LORD had not been on our side when people rose up against us, they would have swallowed us alive because of their burning anger against us. The waters would have engulfed us; a torrent would have overwhelmed us. Yes, the raging waters of their fury would have overwhelmed our very lives.
PROTECTION
Eternity is our gift. We will live and reign with Jesus for eternity. Nothing on this earth can destroy us. In the world we will have trouble and every day of our life will be challenging. Jesus is with us and will be with us from this moment into eternity. Therefore we can rejoice because we belong to Him.
11/06 Ephesians 1:15-17
Ever since I first heard of your strong faith in the Lord Jesus and your love for Christians everywhere, I have never stopped thanking God for you. I pray for you constantly, asking God, the glorious Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, to give you spiritual wisdom and understanding, so that you might grow in your knowledge of God.
GROWTH
Our spiritual growth comes from the Lord. Our daily discipline of time with Him is our choice. We must spend time with Jesus to grow as we should. Growth is a choice, but His salvation is a gift. All have sinned and fall short of the glory of God.
11/07 Ephesians 1:18
I pray that your hearts will be flooded with light so that you can understand the wonderful future he has promised to those he called. I want you to realize what a rich and glorious inheritance he has given to his people.
LIGHT
Light keeps us from stumbling in the dark. It lights our path so that we can move apace from place to place. Light is critical for the functioning of society. Jesus is life and light. When we have Jesus we have light.
11/08 Ephesians 1:19-20
I pray that you will begin to understand the incredible greatness of his power for us who believe him. This is the same mighty power that raised Christ from the dead and seated him in the place of honor at God’s right hand in the heavenly realms.
POWER
Everyone is seeking power to accomplish their goal, find their way and fulfill their needs. When we come to Jesus we relinquish our weak power and surrender our lives to Him. He then gives us power to accomplish His goal. Amazingly when we surrender to Jesus to accomplish His goal we discover that this is the way to abundant life. In surrender we acquire real power for life.
11/09 Ephesians 1:21
Now he is far above any ruler or authority or power or leader or anything else in this world or in the world to come.
AUTHORITY
Jesus has real, eternal authority. When we serve Him we come under His authority. We use His eternal authority to rule our lives and to guide our daily steps. Jesus is the life and light for mankind. In Him is abundance and victory.
11/10 Ephesians 1:22-23
And God has put all things under the authority of Christ, and he gave him this authority for the benefit of the church. And the church is his body; it is filled by Christ, who fills everything everywhere with his presence.
CHURCH
The church is the Bride of Christ. It is His body on earth. In this world His body was broken and abused by evil. Remember as the Bride of Christ we have all authority and power for eternity and therefore can live broken and spilled out for humanity. Love the Lord and be in His church.
11/11 Psalm 124:6-7
Blessed be the LORD, who did not let their teeth tear us apart! We escaped like a bird from a hunter’s trap. The trap is broken, and we are free! Our help is from the LORD, who made the heavens and the earth.
VICTORY
We are victorious and live in victory. We will not be destroyed. We will not be overcome. In this world we will live with many trials and tribulations. In this world we may appear to fail. When we are serving Jesus and walking with Him we are living in victory.
11/12 Ephesians 2:1-2
Once you were dead, doomed forever because of your many sins. You used to live just like the rest of the world, full of sin, obeying Satan, the mighty prince of the power of the air. He is the spirit at work in the hearts of those who refuse to obey God.
ONCE
We are no longer at the mercy of the evil one. He can bruise us and trouble us but he cannot defeat us. Jesus is Lord and we serve the risen Savior. Life in Christ is life eternal. In Jesus we are alive and well throughout eternity.
11/13 Ephesians 2:3
All of us used to live that way, following the passions and desires of our evil nature. We were born with an evil nature, and we were under God’s anger just like everyone else.
SALVATION
There is only one way to have eternal life and that is to accept Christ Jesus as Lord and Savior. This is a gift, it is simple and yet is eternal. It is hard for people to swallow this idea that only God can save us because everyone is dead in their sins until they accept Christ. This is the truth of God.
11/14 Ephesians 2:4-5
But God is so rich in mercy, and he loved us so very much, that even while we were dead because of our sins, he gave us life when he raised Christ from the dead. (It is only by God’s special favor that you have been saved!)
SALVATION
Jesus was searching for you when you met Him. Salvation is His gift to anyone that will ask Him into their heart. If you asked Christ into your heart you are saved. No thing or idea can take this away from you.
11/15 Ephesians 2:6
For he raised us from the dead along with Christ, and we are seated with him in the heavenly realms – all because we are one with Christ Jesus.
SALVATION
Jesus has provided salvation for us. He gives us a new heart. We are reborn into His kingdom. New life in Christ is new life. Jesus is Lord of all.
11/16 Ephesians 2:7-8
And so God can always point to us as examples of the incredible wealth of his favor and kindness toward us, as shown in all he has done for us through Christ Jesus. God saved you by his special favor when you believed. And you can’t take credit for this; it is a gift from God.
GIFT
Grace has come to you. Jesus was looking for you when you were lost. Your salvation is a grace gift from the Lord. He doesn’t need our help to complete His saving gift. Our work is surrender and service. Doing the next right thing is always the right thing to do.
11/17 Ephesians 2:9-10
Salvation is not a reward for the good things we have done, so none of us can boast about it. For we are God’s masterpiece. He has created us anew in Christ Jesus, so that we can do the good things he planned for us long ago.
WORK
Our work is surrender and service. It involves daily quiet time, Bible study, church, works of service and telling others what Jesus has done in our life. Our work is not an activity for salvation because salvation is a gift from the Lord. Our work is a result of His love for us. His desire is that our surrender and service will permit Him to use us to the fullest in this life.
11/18 Psalm 75:1
We thank you, O God! We give thanks because you are near. People everywhere tell of your mighty miracles.
MAJESTY
I love the Grand Canyon. It is majestic. I love a misty street scene. It has a quiet beauty. I love a snow capped mountain. What great beauty. I love a see a new born baby. It is pure and pretty. Jesus is more majestic and beautiful than anything our minds can conjure up. The beauty of this world is simply incomparable to the beauty of Jesus.
11/19 Psalm 75:2-5
God says, “At the time I have planned, I will bring justice against the wicked. When the earth quakes and its people live in turmoil, I am the one who keeps its foundations firm. “I warned the proud, ‘Stop your boasting!’ I told the wicked, ‘Don’t raise your fists! Don’t lift your fists in defiance at the heavens or speak with rebellious arrogance.'”
CONTROL
Jesus is in control. We do not have to live lives of quiet despair. We can rejoice in who we are and what the Lord has assigned us to do.
11/20 Psalm 75:6
For no one on earth – from east or west, or even from the wilderness – can raise another person up.
LIFE
The Lord created all things and is over all things and at the same time knows all things. Jesus gives us life as a gift. It is eternal life and it brings us into the family of God. His power is the power that creates new life.
11/21 Psalm 75:7-8
It is God alone who judges; he decides who will rise and who will fall. For the LORD holds a cup in his hand; it is full of foaming wine mixed with spices. He pours the wine out in judgment, and all the wicked must drink it, draining it to the dregs.
EVIL
God has won the victory over evil. We can appropriate that same victory over evil in our lives if we obey the Lord. Obedience is the pathway to a powerful life and victory over sin. Do the next right thing.
11/22 Psalm 75:9-10
But as for me, I will always proclaim what God has done; I will sing praises to the God of Israel. For God says, “I will cut off the strength of the wicked, but I will increase the power of the godly.”
PROCLAMATION
When we accept new life in Christ and permit Him to have control of our life we will constantly be singing God’s praises. Knowing Jesus and interacting with Him every day causes us to constantly talk about what Jesus is doing and to change our actions to the way Christ calls us to live.
11/23 Psalm 100:1-5
Shout with joy to the LORD, O earth! Worship the LORD with gladness. Come before him, singing with joy. Acknowledge that the LORD is God! He made us, and we are his. We are his people, the sheep of his pasture. Enter his gates with thanksgiving; go into his courts with praise. Give thanks to him and bless his name. For the LORD is good. His unfailing love continues forever, and his faithfulness continues to each generation.
JOY
Joy is an interactive gift from the Lord. When we praise Him we sense and feel the joy of His presence. When we kneel before Him and glorify Him joy washes over us. Fellowship with the Lord produces joy in the heart. Spend time with Him today telling Him of all the wonderful things He has done in your life. Before the end of the day you will be walking in joy.
11/24 Ephesians 2:11-12
Don’t forget that you Gentiles used to be outsiders by birth. You were called “the uncircumcised ones” by the Jews, who were proud of their circumcision, even though it affected only their bodies and not their hearts. In those days you were living apart from Christ. You were excluded from God’s people, Israel, and you did not know the promises God had made to them. You lived in this world without God and without hope.
HOPE
Hope is not wishful thinking. Hope changes us and empowers us. Hope connects us with the promises of the Lord Jesus Christ. Hope paves the way for us to look toward the certainty of our eternal life. Hope reminds us of our value and encourages us as we seek to do that which the Lord created us for. Hope is the connecting pathway for me to grow in mature in Christ.
11/25 Ephesians 2:13
But now you belong to Christ Jesus. Though you once were far away from God, now you have been brought near to him because of the blood of Christ.
NEAR
Salvation in Christ has brought us into the presence of God. We will never be alone. We will always be heard and the Lord is always seeking to comfort us. In this world we will have trouble but the Lord is with us every moment of our life.
11/26 Ephesians 2:14
For Christ himself has made peace between us Jews and you Gentiles by making us all one people. He has broken down the wall of hostility that used to separate us.
PEACE
Jesus is our peace. In Christ we have the gift of peace so that we can lead abundant lives. Our responsibility is service. We are to live with the full knowledge that the Lord is on our side and that He loves us totally. People count with Jesus and we are called to make people count in our lives.
11/27 Ephesians 2:15-16
By his death he ended the whole system of Jewish law that excluded the Gentiles. His purpose was to make peace between Jews and Gentiles by creating in himself one new person from the two groups. Together as one body, Christ reconciled both groups to God by means of his death, and our hostility toward each other was put to death.
PEACE
Jesus brings peace. When we accept Christ He breaks down the barrier of sin and death between Himself and us and between people. In Christ we can live a life of joy and peace knowing that God loves us and that we count. Since we have value we value all those we come into contact with. The more value we place on others the greater our own sense of value. Jesus brings life and meaning to life.
11/28 Ephesians 2:17-20
He has brought this Good News of peace to you Gentiles who were far away from him, and to us Jews who were near. Now all of us, both Jews and Gentiles, may come to the Father through the same Holy Spirit because of what Christ has done for us. So now you Gentiles are no longer strangers and foreigners. You are citizens along with all of God’s holy people. You are members of God’s family. We are his house, built on the foundation of the apostles and the prophets. And the cornerstone is Christ Jesus himself.
CITIZENSHIP
We are citizens of heaven. We are members of God’s family. Here on earth we represent Him. Since we have citizenship we have rights and responsibilities. The Lord will safeguard our rights. We must accept and live up to the responsibilities of a member of the house of God.
11/29 Ephesians 2:21-22
We who believe are carefully joined together, becoming a holy temple for the Lord. Through him you Gentiles are also joined together as part of this dwelling where God lives by his Spirit.
UNITY
Our unity is in Christ. The world will be a place of pain and suffering until Jesus comes back. We live in Christ. We live by Christ. Today we serve Christ.
11/30 Psalm 101:1-2
I will sing of your love and justice. I will praise you, LORD, with songs. I will be careful to live a blameless life – when will you come to my aid? I will lead a life of integrity in my own home.
TODAY
What I do now has eternal consequences. Just as a rock tossed into a pond creates far reaching ripples, what I do affects the world I live in. My strength is in Christ. The motto for today is “do the next right thing.”
