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181 pages

English

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The Gospel of John can be challenging reading, but in the hands of pastor Greg Laurie, it's the perfect material for daily devotional reflections. In the same accessible style that has made him a popular pastor, speaker, and television and radio host, Laurie shares stories and images of Jesus from the Gospel of John woven with additional Scriptures and anecdotes. The result is a ninety-day devotional that offers biblical substance and theological depth presented in clear, engaging language. Readers looking for devotional reading centered on Jesus will enjoy Laurie's blend of important spiritual substance and accessible narrative style.

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Philosophie et théologie

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Publié par	Baker Publishing Group
Date de parution	01 octobre 2007
Nombre de lectures	0
EAN13	9781585586004
Langue	English

Informations légales : prix de location à la page 0,0461€. Cette information est donnée uniquement à titre indicatif conformément à la législation en vigueur.

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W ALKING W ITH J ESUS
W ALKING W ITH J ESUS
D AILY I NSPIR A TION FROM THE G OSPEL OF J OHN
G REG L AURIE
2007 by Greg Laurie
Published by Baker Books a division of Baker Publishing Group P.O. Box 6287, Grand Rapids, MI 49516-6287
Printed in the United States of America
All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted in any form or by any means-for example, electronic, photocopy, recording-without the prior written permission of the publisher. The only exception is brief quotations in printed reviews.
Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data
Laurie, Greg. Walking with Jesus : daily inspiration from the Gospel of John / Greg Laurie. p. cm. Includes bibliographical references. ISBN 10: 0-8010-6815-0 (pbk.) ISBN 978-0-8010-6815-7 (pbk.) 1. Bible. N. T. John-Meditations. 2. Devotional calendars. I. Title. BS2615.54.L38 2007 242 .2-dc22
2007026745
Unless otherwise indicated, Scripture is taken from the HOLY BIBLE, NEW INTERNATIONAL VERSION . NIV . Copyright 1973, 1978, 1984 by International Bible Society. Used by permission of Zondervan. All rights reserved.
Scripture marked NKJV is taken from the New King James Version. Copyright 1982 by Thomas Nelson, Inc. Used by permission. All rights reserved.
Scripture marked NLT is taken from the Holy Bible , New Living Translation, copyright 1996. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Inc., Wheaton, Illinois 60189. All rights reserved.
Scripture marked TNIV is taken from the Holy Bible, Today s New International Version Copyright 2001 by International Bible Society. All rights reserved.
C ONTENTS
Introduction: A Backstage Pass
1. When Heaven Came Down
2. God with Skin On
3. God in Our Midst
4. How Not to Become a Christian
5. What Do You Want?
6. The Investigator
7. A Friend Indeed
8. The Perfect Guest
9. Doing Our Part
10. Questions in the Dark
11. Born Again Defined
12. Life in the Spirit
13. Two Sides of a Coin
14. Oscar and Nicodemus
15. Charlene s Story
16. Out of the Comfort Zone
17. Looking for Love
18. The Worship of Worship
19. Right Worship
20. Worshiping in Truth
21. The Spirit of Worship
22. An Appointment at the Pool
23. When Bad Things Happen
24. The Way of Change
25. Expect Success
26. The Judgment of God
27. Two Resurrections
28. Rewards
29. Make It Count
30. The Test
31. The Challenge of Jesus
32. God of the Impossible
33. A Tale of Two Agendas
34. Hurricane Grace
35. Right on Time
36. Our Friend Failure
37. Breakfast with Jesus
38. The Misunderstood Savior
39. Crazy Talk
40. Standing with Jesus
41. Turning the Tables
42. Sins of the Spirit
43. A New Lease on Life
44. The Source of Suffering
45. The Power of Pain
46. Is Healing Possible?
47. Seeing and Believing
48. An Abundant Life
49. Lessons from a Shepherd
50. All in God s Time
51. Our Friend in Sorrow
52. When God Seems Late
53. No Regrets
54. Mary s Insight
55. Giving Our Best
56. Finders, Weepers; Losers, Keepers
57. Upside-Down Kingdom
58. The Do s and Don ts of a Happy Life
59. Loving to the End
60. The Traitor in Their Midst
61. No Excuses
62. The Age of Stress
63. Looking Homeward
64. The Return of the King
65. Why We Exist
66. Bearing Fruit
67. Reaping the Rewards
68. The Holy Spirit
69. Our Need for Conviction
70. Sin and the Spirit
71. Jesus in Prayer
72. Prayer When You Need It Most
73. A Prayer for Our Preservation
74. A Prayer for Our Hearts
75. The Agony of Jesus
76. The Purpose in Gethsemane
77. Not Victim, But Victor
78. Indecision
79. The Final Decision
80. Crowd Control
81. The Women of the Cross
82. The Day the World Went Dark
83. Why Jesus Died
84. A New Beginning
85. The Day That Changed Everything
86. Alone at the Tomb
87. Jesus and the Skeptic
88. The Gift of Grace
89. Back in the Boat
90. Signs of Love
Notes
I NTRODUCTION A B ACKSTAGE P ASS
Sometimes the Bible can be seen as an overwhelming read. Though most of us own one, many of us have never fully understood its primary message. Needless to say, that is a huge mistake, as it is God s very message to humanity. The Bible is God s very message to you.
When I talk to people who want to read the Bible but aren t sure where to start or what to make of what they ve read so far, I point them to one place: the Gospel of John. John wrote his version of the life of Jesus so that unbelievers might believe, making it the perfect introduction to Jesus, to his mission here on earth, and to God s extraordinary love for his people. I believe John s Gospel has the power to transform lives. I believe anyone who says, God, if you are real, reveal yourself to me, will find God in the words of this Gospel. I believe it because I ve seen it happen.
Yet John wrote his Gospel not only to convince the skeptic but to encourage believers in the commitment we have already made. John 20:31 sums up John s hopes for his work: But these are written that you may believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God, and that believing you may have life in his name. John was saying that the more we believe, the more life we will experience.
John brought a unique perspective to his Gospel. In fact, 90 percent of the material found in John s Gospel is not found in any of the other three. It is in John s Gospel that we find the great I am statements of Christ: I am the bread of life (6:48); I am the light of the world (8:12; 9:5); I am the good shepherd (10:11, 14); I am the resurrection and the life (11:25); and of course, I am the way and the truth and the life (14:6).
Perhaps the reason we find so much new insight in John s story is that he was particularly close to Jesus. His view of Jesus is that of an insider. Following John through these events is like having a backstage pass, so to speak, to the ministry of Jesus. Peter, James, and John went with the Lord on a number of occasions when the other disciples did not. They were there when Jesus was transfigured. They were there when he raised Jairus s daughter from the dead. They were there when Jesus experienced a night of agony in the Garden of Gethsemane.
Interestingly, John refers to himself as the disciple whom Jesus loved. At first, this almost sounds boastful, as if to say, Jesus loved me more than the rest. But that wasn t it at all. It was simply an acknowledgment of God s love for him. So often, we struggle to believe God can love us as much as we hope he will. Yet John assures us, over and over, that God loves us far more than we can imagine.
In the days ahead, you ll read about the earliest days of Jesus s ministry and how he responded to people in need, people looking for answers, people who were hurting and empty, people who were alone and without hope. As you spend time with these devotional readings, my prayer is that you may have power, together with all the saints, to grasp how wide and long and high and deep is the love of Christ, and to know this love that surpasses knowledge-that you may be filled to the measure of all the fullness of God (Eph. 3:18-19), and that along with John, you will be able to say, without a doubt, that you are a disciple whom Jesus loves.
1 W HEN H EAVEN C AME D OWN
We know also that the Son of God has come and has given us understanding, so that we may know him who is true.
And we are in him who is true-even in his Son Jesus Christ.
He is the true God and eternal life.
1 John 5:20
In December 1956, a television game show called To Tell the Truth made its debut on CBS . The show featured three contestants who all claimed to be the same person. It was the job of a four-member celebrity panel to determine which contestant was telling the truth. The show always ended with that now-famous question, Will the real __________ please stand up? The outcome was always a big surprise.
Now imagine you re one of those panelists. There are three contestants on the show claiming to be Jesus, and it s your job to determine which one is the real thing. The first contestant stands up. He has brownish-blond hair and a short, well-trimmed beard. You notice his piercing blue eyes and the otherworldly expression on his face. He is holding a staff in one hand and has a lamb draped around his neck for good measure. So you think, Hey! He looks a lot like those pictures I ve seen. That s Jesus for sure!
The next contestant stands up and says, I am Jesus. When he glances your way, he seems to have this look of approval regarding who and what you are. He looks completely nonjudgmental, and more to the point, rather benign. This Jesus seems like a guy who would make you feel better about yourself. So you think, Maybe that s the real Jesus.
Then the third contestant stands up. Right away, you notice a stark contrast to the other two. He appears to be strong and masculine. At the same time, there seems to be a tender quality about him. As you look closer, you notice he radiates goodness, even holiness. And suddenly you start feeling a little uncomfortable. You realize you re not the person you ought to be. There is something that needs to change. But when you make eye contact with him, instead of seeing rejection and condemnation, you see love-not a watered-down love like the other guy but a sense of someone who loves with genuine affection and care. He makes you want to be a better person. He makes you want to change.
So which Jesus will you choose? Will you choose the stained-glass-window Jesus? The benign Jesus? Or, will you choose the real Jesus of the Bible who loves you and yet challenges you to change? That is the Jesus before us in the Gospel of John. That is the Jesus who became flesh and walked among us.
R ECOGNIZING J ESUS
Now, I don t know what Jesus looked like physically. It would appear that Jesus had a rather ordinary appearance. In speaking of the Messiah to come, the prophet Isaiah wrote,