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Why Don’t We Just Give Up? - Your Daily Forward Devotional

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The Resurrection and the Life

The Resurrection and the Life

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The Way

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The Good Shepherd

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The Good Shepherd

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The Door

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The Bread and the Light

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John Saw It All

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Worry About Yourself

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Count the Cost

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Do You Love God?

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Jump All In

Gone Fishing Again

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Gone Fishing Again

You May Have Life In His Name

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You May Have Life In His Name

The Disciple Who Believed

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The Disciple Who Believed

The Disciple Who Doubted

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The Disciple Who Doubted

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The Return of Christ

Just Jesus

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Just Jesus

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Joy In Christ

Privileges and Practices for Christians

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Privileges and Practices for Christians

Grace and Freedom

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Grace and Freedom

So We Do Not Lose Heart

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So We Do Not Lose Heart

Fatherly Discipline

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Fatherly Discipline

The Righteous Shall Live By Faith

  • Jun 22, 2022

The Righteous Shall Live By Faith

Witnesses To the End of The Earth

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Witnesses To the End of The Earth

God in The Flesh

  • Jun 20, 2022

God in The Flesh

The Great Physician

  • Jun 18, 2022

The Great Physician

Service and Sacrifice

  • Jun 17, 2022

Service and Sacrifice

The Long-Awaited King of the Jews

  • Jun 16, 2022

The Long-Awaited King of the Jews

Is It Even Worth It?

  • Jun 15, 2022

Is It Even Worth It?

A Future Perspective

  • Jun 14, 2022

A Future Perspective

Misplaced Priorities

  • Jun 13, 2022

Misplaced Priorities

Judgment and Joy

  • Jun 11, 2022

Judgment and Joy

The Righteous Will Live By Faith

  • Jun 10, 2022

The Righteous Will Live By Faith

Pride Goes Before Destruction

  • Jun 9, 2022

Pride Goes Before Destruction

Does God Care About Justice?

  • Jun 8, 2022

Does God Care About Justice?

That All Should Be Saved

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That All Should Be Saved

A Battle Between Brothers

  • Jun 6, 2022

A Battle Between Brothers

The Cold Hard Truth

  • Jun 4, 2022

The Cold Hard Truth

Just You Wait

  • Jun 3, 2022

Just You Wait

Idolatry Vs. Adultery

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Idolatry Vs. Adultery

The Lord Reigns Supreme

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The Lord Reigns Supreme

Restored to Glory

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Restored to Glory

The Saddest Chapter In The Book

  • May 30, 2022

The Saddest Chapter In The Book

The Bearer of Bad News

  • May 28, 2022

The Bearer of Bad News

Salvation Is of The Lord

  • May 27, 2022

Salvation Is of The Lord

God’s Plan

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God’s Plan

What’s the Point?

  • May 25, 2022

What’s the Point?

Read the Instructions

  • May 24, 2022

Read the Instructions

A Real Relationship

  • May 23, 2022

A Real Relationship

Why Do Bad Things Happen to Good People?

  • May 21, 2022

Why Do Bad Things Happen to Good People?

God Behind the Scenes

  • May 20, 2022

God Behind the Scenes

Miraculous Reconstruction

  • May 19, 2022

Miraculous Reconstruction

Coming Home

  • May 18, 2022

Coming Home

Not Just A Building

  • May 17, 2022

Not Just A Building

The Family of God

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The Family of God

Discipline and Destruction

  • May 14, 2022

Discipline and Destruction

A Heart and Kingdom Divided

  • May 13, 2022

A Heart and Kingdom Divided

The Greatest King Ever

  • May 12, 2022

The Greatest King Ever

No King But God?

  • May 11, 2022

No King But God?

A Love That Redeems

  • May 10, 2022

A Love That Redeems

Rebel, Rescue, Repeat

  • May 9, 2022

Rebel, Rescue, Repeat

A Literal Scarlet Thread

  • May 7, 2022

A Literal Scarlet Thread

He’s Faithful, So Be Faithful

  • May 6, 2022

He’s Faithful, So Be Faithful

Why Did It Take So Long?

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Why Did It Take So Long?

Holy as He Is Holy

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Holy as He Is Holy

Passed Over

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Passed Over

The Beginning of Redemption

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The Beginning of Redemption

The Lord Is Near

  • Apr 30, 2022

The Lord Is Near

I’ll Be Happy When…

  • Apr 29, 2022

I’ll Be Happy When…

Working Hard or Hardly Working?

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Working Hard or Hardly Working?

You Can’t Hide a Lie

  • Apr 27, 2022

You Can’t Hide a Lie

The Sin Underneath All Others

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The Sin Underneath All Others

Play the Long Game

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Play the Long Game

Where Does Joy Come From?

  • Apr 23, 2022

Where Does Joy Come From?

Well Worth the Wait

  • Apr 22, 2022

Well Worth the Wait

Getting to Know God

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Getting to Know God

Why Don’t We Just Give Up?

  • Apr 20, 2022

Why Don’t We Just Give Up?

Take Heart, He’s With You

  • Apr 19, 2022

Take Heart, He’s With You

Out of Sight, Out of Mind

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Out of Sight, Out of Mind

What Are You Afraid Of?

  • Apr 16, 2022

What Are You Afraid Of?

Nothing Can Separate Us

  • Apr 15, 2022

Nothing Can Separate Us

What Has God Forgiven You For?

  • Apr 14, 2022

What Has God Forgiven You For?

But by the Grace Of God

  • Apr 13, 2022

But by the Grace Of God

A Healthy Swap

  • Apr 12, 2022

A Healthy Swap

Tell Yourself the Truth

  • Apr 11, 2022

Tell Yourself the Truth

He Hears You

  • Apr 9, 2022

He Hears You

Listen and Learn

  • Apr 8, 2022

Listen and Learn

Do You Need to Put Up Some Walls?

  • Apr 7, 2022

Do You Need to Put Up Some Walls?

Keep Your Cool

  • Apr 6, 2022

Keep Your Cool

Great Is His Faithfulness

  • Apr 5, 2022

Great Is His Faithfulness

Move on to the Meat

  • Apr 4, 2022

Move on to the Meat

Saving Faith Works

  • Apr 2, 2022

Saving Faith Works

Is Other People’s Faith Your Business?

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Is Other People’s Faith Your Business?

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backtothebiblebttb2
Back to the BibleApr 20, 2022 6:00 am GMT

Why Don’t We Just Give Up?

 

April 20

 

Read Romans 5:1-5 (ESV)

Therefore, since we have been justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ. Through him we have also obtained access by faith into this grace in which we stand, and we rejoice in hope of the glory of God. Not only that, but we rejoice in our sufferings, knowing that suffering produces endurance, and endurance produces character, and character produces hope, and hope does not put us to shame, because God’s love has been poured into our hearts through the Holy Spirit who has been given to us.

 

Reflect

How does knowing the blessings that God has promised us through Christ encourage you to persevere in the midst of trials and suffering?

 

I think one of the hardest things about being a human is the fact that we don’t know exactly what the future holds. In times of trials and sufferings, we don’t know how long we’ll have to endure the pain. We don’t know how the situation will be resolved. How long will the trial last? We just don’t know. So what encourages us to keep going? Why don’t we just give up?

 

That’s why I find Paul’s words to the Romans so encouraging here. First, he summarized our great hope. We have been justified or declared righteous through Jesus Christ. Instead of dreading future judgment and fearing the wrath of God, those of us who have placed our faith in Christ can have inner peace in knowing that our relationship with God has been restored. Once we were enemies of God because of our sin and rebellion against Him (Colossians 1:21). But in Romans 5:1-11, Paul explained that because of Jesus’s death on our behalf, we have been reconciled to God!

 

Paul went on to explain that we obtain access to God only by faith in Jesus Christ. Once we come to Jesus in faith, we are in good standing with God. We stand secure in His grace by faith. Furthermore, Paul wrote that we “rejoice in hope of the glory of God” (5:1). Not only do we no longer have to fear God’s wrath and dread His judgment, but we also get to look forward with great joy to sharing in God’s glory for all eternity!

 

But if that somehow isn’t enough to look forward to, Paul goes on. He said that we don’t just have to endure the suffering that we face in this life. Instead, we can rejoice in it! Why? Because God is using that suffering to refine us and transform us.

 

When we want to get in physical shape, we have to train and work out. We have to endure what we might consider suffering in order to see any kind of transformation in our physical bodies. Likewise, persevering through trials builds spiritual muscle. Over time, these “work-outs” make us stronger and build in us a character that is more and more like Christ every day. It is truly transformational.

 

Plus, we have hope! We have something to look forward to. We may not know how long the trial is going to last or when the suffering will end. But we do know that our eternal rewards will far outweigh this temporary suffering. In 2 Corinthians 4:16-18, Paul wrote: “So we do not lose heart. Though our outer self is wasting away, our inner self is being renewed day by day. For this light and momentary affliction is preparing for us an eternal weight of glory beyond all comparison as we look not to things that are seen but to the things that are unseen. For the things that are seen are transient, but the things that unseen are eternal.”

 

Friends, I don’t know about you, but if God hadn’t made us so many promises so clearly in His Word, I would be tempted to just give up when times get hard. The world can be so brutal and without the hope of Jesus Christ found in His Word, what hope do we have? But we do have hope! We have a promise that no matter what we are going through here, the glory that awaits us is better by far! And our suffering here isn’t pointless. God is using it to strengthen us and transform us. So, no matter how hard life gets, don’t give up! Press on. It is going to be worth it. I promise.

 

Pray

Lord, sometimes life is so hard. You know the struggles and suffering that I am going through. Without Your promises, I would be tempted to just give up. But I know that You have promised a future glory that far outweighs my pain right now. Please give me the strength to persevere. Use the trials to strengthen me and transform my character more and more into Your image. Amen.

 

~ Pastor Nat Crawford

 

 

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David
a year ago
Lord Jesus, You have done a marvelous work for us on the cross of Calvary. By Your death, we have been cleansed from our sin, we have been reconciled to our Father, and we have been declared righteous. No other person could have done as You have, on our behalf. Thank You Lord.
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likeReply
a year ago
Heavenly Father, I am grateful that You have heard my cry for the knowledge of who You are and have led me to follow Your Son, Jesus. Continue to strengthen my faith in Christ and help me to endure the many trials which will ultimately lead me unto life eternal. Amen.
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dotsofthings
a year ago
We are a people of Hope!
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S
Rebecca
a year ago
Thank you. Just what I needed.
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S
Mark
a year ago
Amen. Thank You, Lord Jesus, for your love, mercy, and grace. Thank you for sharing the Way, Pastor Nat.
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