Teachable Disciples

June 4

(Acts 11:25-26 NIV) "Then Barnabas went to Tarsus to look for Saul, {26} and when he found him, he brought him to Antioch. So for a whole year Barnabas and Saul met with the church and taught great numbers of people. The disciples were called Christians first at Antioch."

(Acts 18:11 NIV) "So Paul stayed for a year and a half, teaching them the word of God."

(Mark 6:34 NIV) "When Jesus landed and saw a large crowd, he had compassion on them, because they were like sheep without a shepherd. So he began teaching them many things."

One of the traits that marked the early disciples and earned them the label “Christian” was their teachability. Like sponges, the believers in Antioch soaked up the teaching of Saul and Barnabas for a whole year. With diligence and determination, they sacrificed their time to learn. Today, many who identify as Christians have lost that spirit. Far too many are just “Sunday morning Christians”. They seldom read the Bible for themselves, study Scripture together, or spend time in prayer. Becoming a mature disciple does not happen automatically. There is no magic pill. It takes discipline, and requires a teachable spirit, which is a choice. One of the greatest weaknesses of the church today is the lack of teachable disciples. Apathy, busyness, indifference, and arrogance define many believers, and these attitudes hinder discipleship. Don’t be one of the unteachables. -- Friar Tuck’s Word of the Day

Full of It

June 3

(Acts 11:24 NIV) “He was a good man, full of the Holy Spirit and faith, and a great number of people were brought to the Lord.”

(John 1:14 NIV) “The Word became flesh and made his dwelling among us. We have seen his glory, the glory of the One and Only, who came from the Father, full of grace and truth.”

(Acts 6:8 NIV) “Now Stephen, a man full of God's grace and power, did great wonders and miraculous signs among the people.”

(Luke 11:39 NIV) ““Then the Lord said to him, "Now then, you Pharisees clean the outside of the cup and dish, but inside you are full of greed and wickedness.””

You may have heard the expression, “He’s full of it.” It is not usually meant as a compliment. When Luke speaks of Barnabas being sent to Antioch, he tells us that Barnabas was a man “full of the Holy Spirit and faith.” When John speaks of Jesus, he describes the Lord as “full of grace and truth.” Stephen, the church’s first recorded martyr, is described as “a man full of grace and power.” Conversely, Jesus described the Pharisees as “full of greed and wickedness.” How would God describe you? If the Lord described you as “full of it”, what would he be talking about? What a glorious epitaph for our tombstones, if it could honestly be said of us, “He (she) was a good man (woman), full of the Holy Spirit and faith, and he (she) brought a great number of people to the Lord.” If we’re going to be described as being full of something, let’s work at making it “the Holy Spirit and faith.” -- Friar Tuck’s Word of the Day

Evidence of Grace

June 2

(Acts 11:23 NIV) "When he arrived and saw the evidence of the grace of God, he was glad and encouraged them all to remain true to the Lord with all their hearts."

(Acts 26:20 NIV) "First to those in Damascus, then to those in Jerusalem and in all Judea, and to the Gentiles also, I preached that they should repent and turn to God and prove their repentance by their deeds."

(1 Corinthians 4:1-2 NIV) "So then, men ought to regard us as servants of Christ and as those entrusted with the secret things of God. {2} Now it is required that those who have been given a trust must prove faithful."

When Barnabas looked at the lives of the new Christians at Antioch, he saw evidence of God’s grace. They were becoming a reflection of Jesus. The evidence of grace is a changed life -- a life that causes others to say, “There’s something different about you. What is it?” The change starts when we believe the truth about Jesus. This lights a fire, and the grace of God begins to percolate in us. As we feed on God’s word and spend time with God in prayer, the way we live begins to change, and we begin to produce the evidence of grace. If we see salvation as just a momentary decision that supplies us with a “get out of hell free” card, this likely won’t happen. God calls us to more than just a day of salvation. He calls us to a lifetime of discipleship. As the evidence of grace grows in our lives, others will be drawn to the glow of the gospel. Is your life producing evidence of grace? -- Friar Tuck’s Word of the Day

Making News for Jesus

June 1

(Acts 11:22 NIV) "News of this reached the ears of the church at Jerusalem, and they sent Barnabas to Antioch."

(Matthew 4:24 NIV) "News about him spread all over Syria, and people brought to him all who were ill with various diseases, those suffering severe pain, the demon-possessed, those having seizures, and the paralyzed, and he healed them."

(Luke 7:15-17 NIV) "The dead man sat up and began to talk, and Jesus gave him back to his mother. {16} They were all filled with awe and praised God. "A great prophet has appeared among us," they said. "God has come to help his people." {17} This news about Jesus spread throughout Judea and the surrounding country."

Good news travels slower than bad news, but it does travel. When faith is genuine, it becomes newsworthy. If we love consistently, we make news for Jesus that goes beyond the token church page in the local newspaper. If the only news we generate is soup suppers, car washes, pancake feeds, and Vacation Bible Schools, we haven’t really done much for Jesus. If the only time people know we belong to a church is when they read our obituary in the newspaper, we have failed our calling. Live a life that produces good news -- news that reaches the ears of unbelievers and skeptics. Surprise the world with love, grace, compassion, and generosity. Show your neighbors who Jesus is with your life. Use every opportunity God provides to speak of the changes Christ has brought to your life. When the church does this, the label “Christian” will become admirable again. -- Friar Tuck’s Word of the Day