Bible Verse of the Day Sunday January 17th 2021

Luke 18:10-14 Two men went up to the temple to pray, one a Pharisee and the other a tax collector. The Pharisee stood by himself and prayed: ‘God, I thank you that I am not like other people—robbers, evildoers, adulterers—or even like this tax collector. I fast twice a week and give a tenth of all I get. But the tax collector stood at a distance. He would not even look up to heaven, but beat his breast and said, ‘God, have mercy on me, a sinner.’ I tell you that this man, rather than the other, went home justified before God. For all those who exalt themselves will be humbled, and those who humble themselves will be exalted.

For Christians to be effective and successful in our ministry to reach those around us that do not know Christ as their Savior, we must first be open and honest when it comes to our own sinfulness. We tend to go to church with a somewhat pious outlook so that those around us will not know what we are struggling with every day.

We all have issues in our walk with our Savior that we battle every day; Satan is always there trying to keep us off balanced. Even Paul had his thorn in the flesh that Satan tormented him throughout his ministry (2 Corinthians 12:7).

This is not to suggest that we should make public all of our deepest darkest thoughts and secrets. We should be honest with ourselves; David expressed this kind of conscientiousness in psalms 51:2 &13. Many Christians have dedicated their lives to the furtherance of the Gospel of Christ. These not only chart their course according to the precepts of Jesus but give innumerable hours and funds to the spreading of God’s Word. All of those that have unselfishly given their hearts and souls to Christ Jesus face one of Satan’s most pernicious traps, which is to bank on our good deeds to prove our faithfulness.

Consequently, when someone begins to depend on all the “good things I have done” to display what a good Christian they are, it will lead to looking down on someone who has not done as much. To protect ourselves from this “holier than thou” attitude, we must realize just the correct role of good works. God created us to do good works, this is our God-given purpose in life, and it does not make us good or righteous, only sinners saved by God’s grace that carry out our callings (Ephesians 2:10). When we begin to admit to ourselves our sins and propensity towards evil, we will not be prone to display a “holier than thou” attitude in church or anywhere else.

Then we will be a useful tool in the hands of our Creator, to introduce people to Christ Jesus and be good reflectors for His light to shine before this dark and dying world. Let us always humbly come before the Throne of God, seeking His grace and mercy.

If You would like the Verse of the Day sent to your daily E-Mail send a request in the "Comments" section. Please include your e-mail address