June – For the Gospel’s Sake Day 174 – 23 June Who holds the reins? Everyone who competes in the games goes into strict training. (1 Corinthians 9:25, NIV) Of all the virtues, self-control is surely the one nobody pins to a poster. It sounds grey and joyless, conjuring up locked biscuit tins and cold
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June – For the Gospel’s Sake Day 173 – 22 June Run like you mean it Do you not know that in a race all the runners run, but only one receives the prize? So run that you may obtain it. (1 Corinthians 9:24, ESV) Just outside Corinth, every couple of years, the whole region
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June – For the Gospel’s Sake Day 172 – 21 June The bond that holds us together Beyond all these things put on love, which is the perfect bond of unity. (Colossians 3:14, NASB) Suppose a church does everything this week’s reflections have described, and does it well. The people genuinely share one another’s heavy
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June – For the Gospel’s Sake Day 171 – 20 June Grace where payment was due Be kind and compassionate to one another, forgiving each other, just as in Christ God forgave you. (Ephesians 4:32, NIV) Most of us are carrying an old wound somewhere, tucked out of sight but still tender to the touch.
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June – For the Gospel’s Sake Day 170 – 19 June Leave a little give with all humility and gentleness, with patience, showing tolerance for one another in love. (Ephesians 4:2, NASB) Spend enough time close to anyone, and the small things begin to surface. The friend whose warmth first drew you turns out to
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June – For the Gospel’s Sake Day 169 – 18 June Being there is most of it Therefore encourage one another and build each other up, just as in fact you are doing. (1 Thessalonians 5:11, NIV) Most of us have stood frozen outside a grieving friend’s door, hand half-raised to knock, suddenly unsure whether
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June – For the Gospel’s Sake Day 168 – 17 June Two kinds of load Bear one another’s burdens, and thereby fulfill the law of Christ. (Galatians 6:2, NASB) Read a little way into the sixth chapter of Galatians and Paul seems to contradict himself within the space of three short sentences. First he tells
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June – For the Gospel’s Sake Day 167 – 16 June Different on purpose But now indeed there are many members, yet one body. (1 Corinthians 12:20, NKJV) A creature made of nothing but one enormous eye would be a pitiful thing, rolling helplessly about the floor, taking in everything around it in fine detail
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June – For the Gospel’s Sake Day 166 – 15 June You have a real stake in this because of your partnership in the gospel from the first day until now. (Philippians 1:5, ESV) We hand the word partner to all manner of relationships, and it repays a closer look. A couple are partners, two
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June – For the Gospel’s Sake Day 165 – 14 June For the sake of one thing And this I do for the gospel’s sake, that I might be partaker thereof with you. (1 Corinthians 9:23, KJV) For a fortnight now, this small daily word has circled one idea from a dozen angles. We have
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