Daily Bible Verses for 7/10/2016

Bible Verse
Reject profane and old wives’ fables, and exercise yourself toward godliness. For bodily exercise profits a little, but godliness is profitable for all things, having promise of the life that now is and of that which is to come. Take heed to yourself and to the doctrine. Continue in them, for in doing this you will save both yourself and those who hear you.

Reading Notes
Sometimes we can set our sights too closely on this world, and we can become consumed with cultural traditions, rituals and social customs. In addition, because of this modern world we live in, we can also become consumed with material possessions, physical fitness, sports and social activities. However, God’s word reminds us these things, though good are not primary. Though helpful in the immediate, they do not come first, they are not of primary importance. As followers of Jesus, we have to remember, we do not mix cultural tradition with God’s word. Moreover, we do not place, the traditions of men, above God’s word. We have to remember our bodies are fading away. The bodies we have now, are not the bodies we will enter into eternity with. And even though physical fitness is good and important for health it’s not primary, and it doesn’t come before Jesus. What’s important is our walk with Christ and His calling on our lives, not our pastimes, nor our hobbies.

Our world likes to place labels on people. However, God has already given us His label, we are called by His name. We are His children through our faith in Christ Jesus our Lord. Therefore, we should be known as followers of Jesus before we are known for anything else, including our career and our hobbies. In addition, we have to be careful and pay attention to our own godly life. We are all called to be an instrument of God for preaching the Gospel to those who are lost. Attending church once a week is by no means the source of our identification as Christians. Our identification as Christians is based on the place Jesus holds in our hearts and in our lives. Everything else follows the priority we have given Christ in our lives. God has called us to use our faith, our time, our talents and our resources, to carry on the work of spreading the Gospel. To bring others out of darkness and into the light of Christ. And how we live out our faith in our day to day life, is what identifies us as followers of Jesus.