Thought for May 17

 History:

  • 1620: First merry-go-round seen at a fair in Turkey
  • 1792: 24 merchants form the New York Stock Exchange at 70 Wall Street
  • 1861: First color photograph--a tartan ribbon
  • 1875: First Kentucky Derby
  • 1900: L Frank Baum publishes "The Wonderful Wizard of Oz"
  • 1904: Ravel's "Sheherazade" premiers
  • 1915: National Baptist Convention chartered
  • 1939: First televised baseball game--Princeton v. Columbia
  • 1946: Truman takes control of the railroads
  • 1954: Supreme Court decides Brown v. Board of Education
  • 1973: Senate Watergate hearings begin
  • 1990: World Health Organization removes homosexuality from list of mental illnesses
  • 1992: Betsy King wins her 5th Major--LPGA Championship
  • 1993: Intel Pentium processor unveiled
  • 2009: "Minecraft" released
  • 2018: Michigan State agrees to pay $500 million for Larry Nassar sex abuse
  • Born: Edward Jenner [smallpox vaccine], Horace Dodge, Cool Papa Bell [baseball player so fast they said he could hit the light switch and be in bed before it got dark], Maureen O'Sullivan, Dennis Hopper, Bill Paxton, Bob Saget, Sugar Ray Leonard, Jim Nantz, Enya, Matt Ryan
  • Died: Botticelli, John Jay, John Deere, Lawrence Welk, Donna Summer, Ken Venturi, Herman Wouk ["Winds of War"]
Thought:
Reading Romans 1:16-17 this morning. Asking myself, "are you ashamed of the gospel." Look at these verses. Paul affirms that he is not ashamed of the gospel and then provides reasons why.
  • The gospel is the power of God for salvation to everyone who believes. Think about that--the gospel is the power of God for salvation. I often ask God to demonstrate His power--maybe if I presented the gospel more, His power would be on display in the transformed life of a new believer.  But I should never be ashamed of the gospel because it has the power to transform a dead person to an eternally living person. What else  has that power?
  • The gospel reveals the righteousness of God. Not only does the gospel revel and unleash the power of God, it reveals the righteousness of God--It presents who God is; it reminds us of who we are; it displays His glory, majesty, power, and authority and uncovers our sin; it shows that He is perfect and we are not; and it foretells of His justice and judgment. 
As I read this I think--am I ashamed of a power that lovingly and graciously transforms. Am I ashamed of a gospel that reveals the truth about who God is and who I am. Then it dawns on me--any time I fail to live the gospel, I am acting ashamed--I didn't correct that vile joke, that hateful statement, that joke about a brother. Maybe there is more than just presenting the gospel--maybe living the gospel is required to demonstrate I am not ashamed. 

Lord, today help me to live a life worthy of the gospel, that presents the gospel, that demonstrates what the gospel looks like and sounds like. I am not ashamed of the gospel of Jesus Christ.

Blessings
Larry

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